← HomeYouth unemployment surges 46% in Marina Alta after summer, but employment remains at record highs
Unemployment rose by 233 people in September in Marina Alta as the season ended, with more than half of the increase among those under 25 years old, whose joblessness grew by 46%. Even so, the adjustment has been smaller than in previous years and the comarca maintains the lowest unemployment rate for a September since 2007.
La Marina Times newsroom
Saturday 17 October 2026, 09:15 · 2 min read
The end of the season, in the figures
The end of summer has again been felt in the Marina Alta's labour market, and young people are suffering most. According to data from the Observatori Marina Alta, unemployment rose by 233 people in September, reaching 7,515 jobless, and the comarca lost 1,497 Social Security affiliates with the closure of the hospitality and retail season.
Half of that increase falls on those under 25 years old. According to analysis published by La Marina Plaza, youth unemployment rose from around 272 people in August to 396 in September, a 46% increase. Although young people represent a small part of the total unemployed, they account for around 53% of the rise recorded after summer.
A smaller adjustment than in previous years
The figure has another side. This September's rise in unemployment was 31% lower than the average of previous years, and the comarca is maintaining record employment levels: it closed the month with 68,745 affiliates, the lowest unemployment figure for a September since 2007 and an estimated unemployment rate of 9.85%, compared to 10.6% a year ago.
The most notable case is Calp, which has recorded an unemployment rate of 6.68%, the lowest in the past two decades and the best figure in the entire province of Alicante.
More permanent contracts
Hiring also shows changes. Between January and September, 32,131 contracts were signed in the comarca, 17.35% more than in the same period of 2025. Full-time permanent contracts grew by 26.28% and part-time permanent contracts by 45.02%, whilst fixed discontinuous contracts, the usual formula for seasonal employment, fell by 17.60%.
A structural weakness
The trend once again reveals one of the weaknesses of the comarca's labour market: its dependence on the tourism season. Hospitality and retail absorb young workers in summer, after a summer of record employment, and expel them as soon as the season ends.
For young people, that instability is added to the problem of access to housing in a comarca where buying a house in Xàbia already requires 69% of family income.
