The Lanzarote Business Confederation (CEL) demands actions to curb the rise in the long-term unemployment rate. According to data from the National Institute of Statistics, in Lanzarote there are already 3,541 people who have been job seekers for at least two years. This group represents 36.8% of the entire population in unemployment on the island.
The data for the autonomous community is even worse. In the Canary Islands, the percentage reaches 39%, which is more than 74,000 people. The archipelago is the second Spanish region with the most long-term unemployed.
The president of the CEL, Francisco Martínez, expresses his concern about these data: "What they show is that, despite improving employment figures, certain groups are still not being attended to who cannot find jobs."
"Subsidy lines and aid for companies are essential so that they are able to expand their workforces and give opportunities to the long-term unemployed," details the president.
"Employability projects such as the one we develop annually from the CEL, together with the Cabildo of Lanzarote, are very useful tools for the most vulnerable groups. Dozens of people in this situation got jobs thanks to this in the last year. Therefore, we must promote these investments so that plans like these continue to be promoted," he points out.
"Sooner or later the employment rate will stagnate if we do not solve structural problems like this, since people with difficult access to the labor market, who are already quite a few, will remain in that situation, and even more will be added," warns the president.
"Young people, people without training, people over 55 years of age and other vulnerable groups are some of the groups most exposed to being part of that percentage of long-term unemployed, so employment policies focused on increasing the job opportunities of these are necessary," Martínez points out.
"Training programs such as Dual Vocational Training are also a fundamental tool for people without training, especially for the group of younger people who suffer long-term unemployment," concludes the president.
