The OECD recommends that collecting unemployment benefits be compatible with working

The OECD has recommended that Spain, in order to reduce its unemployment rate, implement measures, including making the collection of unemployment benefits compatible with work in order to give incentives to the unemployed to return to the labor market, something that already exists. have done in France or Italy.

This appears in its Report on Spain, presented in Madrid this Wednesday and in which the organization has been critical of the increases in the Minimum Wage – which have had effects on employment and which, in the future, must be carried out in accordance with productivity – and with the pension reform of José Luis Escrivá, which they consider insufficient to guarantee the sustainability of Social Security.

Regarding the labor market, the OECD has noted that “high unemployment largely reflects structural problems, such as few incentives for the unemployed to return to work, a mismatch in the skills of the unemployed and active labor market policies.” labor market that are not effective enough.

He admits that the labor reform, the promotion of ERTE and the reforms associated with European funds seek to reduce structural unemployment in our country, but believes that “complementary efforts” are necessary, such as improving assistance in job search, guidance vocational and work experience programmes, as well as support for upskilling and reskilling.

“It will be important to strengthen monitoring of the unemployed and offer them greater incentives to return to work.”. Activation requirements in Spain for the unemployed are lower than in most other OECD countries in relation to availability to work, job search activity required and sanctions imposed. Furthermore, although the generosity of unemployment benefits is similar to that of other EU countries, the replacement rate declines more slowly than in other countries, which reduces incentives to return to work,” they point out.

It would be preferable, in their opinion, for public employment services to be stricter when withdrawing benefits when an unemployed person does not accept a job offer and they also consider that benefits should be reduced more quickly and be shorter. in line with the proposal made by different experts on how Spain could achieve full employment and which were collected this Sunday in Actualidad Económica.

As EL MUNDO has learned, the current Government is considering a reform of passive employment policies to ensure that the collection of unemployment benefits does not discourage the search for a job, something that in its opinion could contribute to reducing even more the structural unemployment rate until it is in line with the European rate, which is between 6% and 8%.