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Spain’s Over-55 Unemployment Now Tops Prime-Age Rate, Report Finds

Researchers link the reversal to rapid technological change, urging stronger lifelong training to keep older workers employed.

Overview

  • A Fundación BBVA–IVIE report shows a 2025 unemployment rate of 9.8% for people aged 55 and over versus 9.4% for those 24 to 54.
  • In the Basque Country, the three-quarter average places unemployment at 7.0% for over‑55s compared with 6.3% for under‑55s.
  • Older jobseekers face entrenched joblessness, with 57.9% of unemployed seniors out of work for more than a year compared with 36.1% among 25–54-year-olds.
  • Recently rehired seniors are concentrated in lower-quality roles, with 52.6% on temporary contracts and a higher incidence of very short-term work.
  • The study cites skills mismatches and age stereotypes as barriers and calls for policies that expand continuous training and counter age bias to support pensions and labor supply.