Vega Baja closes August with 21,414 unemployed and maintains 70 fewer jobseekers than a year ago

Vega Baja closed August 2026 with 21,414 unemployed people, according to data collected by CCOO Vinalopó-Vega Baja as of 31st August.

The figures for the last month reflect an increase of 491 unemployed people compared to July, of whom 332 are men and 159 are women. However, when expanding the comparison to the last twelve months, the situation changes: the region currently registers 70 fewer unemployed people than in August 2025.

By gender, out of the 21,414 unemployed individuals in Vega Baja, 8,553 are men (39.94%) and 12,861 are women (60.06%). In this way, six out of every ten unemployed people in the region are women.

Unemployment increases in August across much of Vega Baja

The monthly rise did not occur uniformly across the 27 municipalities. Among the towns with the highest increase in absolute terms are Torrevieja, with 134 more unemployed people; Orihuela, with 98; Callosa de Segura, with 34; Albatera, with 30; Almoradí and Pilar de la Horadada, both with 28 more; and Redován, with 26.

In the opposite direction, some municipalities reduced their figures during August. Catral recorded five fewer unemployed, whilst Daya Nueva reduced its figure by two and Benferri by one. Algorfa showed no variation.

The year-on-year trend is more favourable for the region as a whole. Compared to the monthly rise of 491 people, Vega Baja has 70 fewer unemployed people than a year ago.

Orihuela reaches 4,148 unemployed people

Orihuela closed August with 4,148 unemployed individuals, making it the municipality with the second highest number of jobseekers in the region, behind only Torrevieja.

Of the total, 1,673 are men (40.33%) and 2,475 are women (59.67%).

Compared to July, Orihuela added 98 unemployed people, of whom 59 are men and 39 are women.

The annual comparison offers a positive trend, however. Orihuela has 77 fewer unemployed people than in August 2025. This year-on-year reduction is concentrated particularly amongst women, with 64 fewer unemployed females compared to a decrease of 13 men.

Torrevieja adds 134 unemployed people during August

Torrevieja continues to concentrate the highest number of unemployed people in Vega Baja, with 6,483 jobseekers at the end of August.

Of these, 2,600 are men (40.10%) and 3,883 are women (59.90%).

During August, unemployment increased by 134 people, with 96 of the increase corresponding to men and 38 to women.

Unlike Orihuela, the year-on-year comparison also shows an increase: Torrevieja has 124 more unemployed people than in August 2025.

Almoradí registers 1,554 unemployed people

Almoradí closed August with 1,554 unemployed individuals, of whom 624 are men (40.15%) and 930 are women (59.85%).

The town registered 28 more unemployed people than in July, with an increase of 21 men and 7 women.

In comparison with August 2025, Almoradí also shows an increase, with 24 more unemployed people than a year ago.

Benejúzar maintains better figures than a year ago

In Benejúzar, the number of unemployed people stands at 347, of whom 132 are men (38.04%) and 215 are women (61.96%).

During August, there was a slight increase of four unemployed people. By gender, the number of men increased by seven, whilst the number of women dropped by three.

The year-on-year trend is notably different: Benejúzar records 31 fewer unemployed people than in August 2025. In this case, the annual reduction also has a strong female component, with 19 fewer unemployed women and 12 fewer men.

A region with contrasting monthly and annual trends

The August figures leave two different readings of the Labour market in Vega Baja. In the short term, unemployment grew by 491 people compared to July, reaching 21,414. However, compared to August 2025, the region maintains a reduction of 70 unemployed people.

The breakdown by municipality also highlights significant differences: whilst Orihuela and Benejúzar improved their figures compared to a year ago, Torrevieja and Almoradí currently have more unemployed people than in August 2025.