Employment regulation files (ERE) have gained weight in Spain during the first half of the year. More than 21,000 workers have been affected by collective dismissals until June, 5.4% more than in the same period of 2025. Meanwhile, contract suspensions and temporary reductions in working hours (the other two types of employment regulation files) have fallen by almost 27%, to 30,138 workers, according to the Employment Regulation Statistics, updated this Thursday by the Ministry of Labor.
Thus, although these latter mechanisms, less traumatic than dismissals, remain the majority, the increase in staff cuts paints a scenario in which more and more employers are opting as a first adjustment measure for dismissals, which were once the majority compared to reductions in working hours or temporary suspensions.
The labor reform approved after the pandemic (in 2021) sought precisely to facilitate that companies adjust employment temporarily, through ERTE and reductions in working hours, to prevent any drop in activity from resulting in dismissals. That temporary adjustments have declined so intensely while contract terminations increase suggests a change in how companies are facing their adjustment needs, increasingly resorting to the definitive route. But the phenomenon is concentrated especially in sectors such as manufacturing and technological activities, immersed in reorganization processes linked to automation and the incorporation of artificial intelligence.
The adjustment is especially clear in telecommunications, computer programming, and consulting. In June alone, 1,038 workers in these branches were included in collective dismissals. Unions have long been denouncing that this algorithmic revolution is becoming a justification for companies to more frequently opt for the fast track of collective dismissal rather than retraining their professionals. This is the case of the consulting firm Capgemini, which in April this year announced an ERE potentially affecting more than 700 people. Another example is Inetum, which after agreeing with the unions in June, has agreed on a staff reduction affecting 400 workers.
The manufacturing industry is another epicenter of job destruction. So far this year, it has accumulated almost 4,800 workers affected by collective dismissals. That is, it accounts for two out of every ten permanent terminations in the country. In addition, this represents an accumulated increase of more than 300% compared to the first half of 2025, when the sector recorded 1,140 dismissals.
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Adding all modalities, a total of 51,348 workers were affected in the first six months of the year by some type of employment regulation. 90% were included in procedures for economic, technical, organizational, or production causes (known by the acronym ETOP). While the remaining 10% were due to force majeure causes. Within this latter group, Labor notes that 681 workers remain protected by the exceptional ERTEs approved to address the effects of the October 2024 storm, as well as other severe weather episodes recorded at the beginning of the year.
By territories, Madrid and Catalonia account for more than half of the EREs in the first half, which corresponds to the fact that these two communities host the corporate headquarters of large multinational corporations, which have led the definitive personnel restructurings so far in 2026. Specifically, Madrid accumulates a total of 5,902 workers, while Catalonia adds 5,358 people affected. Far behind them is the Valencian Community, which adds more than 2,300 collective dismissals, driven by strong adjustments recorded in spring.
A 10% increase in June
June ends with a strong year-on-year increase of 9.8% in collective dismissals. In this month alone, 4,279 workers were affected. The manufacturing industry and telecommunications account for more than half of the dismissals recorded.
The evolution of the technology sector is partially conditioned by the entry into force of the new classification of economic activities, which has changed the way some of these companies appear in the statistics. The year-on-year jump, therefore, is conditioned by the methodology. Something similar happens in construction and agriculture, although for a different reason. In both cases, the year-on-year percentages soar because they start from very low figures. The countryside is the best example, as it goes from recording a single person affected in June 2025 to 88 in June this year.
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