Fiscal crisis and public employment in Spain

some data for reflection

Abstract

The article presents a series of comparative statistics to illustrate the situation of public employment in Spain in relation to other OECD countries. The purpose is to provide information useful for the analysis of both fiscal policies in the context of the crisis and its impact on employment, and of the reforms that can be carried out beyond budgetary adjustment. First, a set of quantitative indicators are presented: size and relative cost of public employment and its evolution over the last years. We continue by pointing out some qualitative indicators, which relate to the degree to which the public sector has incorporated, into its organizational structure, management practices and relations to countries in our environment, institutional innovations that past experience associates with effectiveness and efficiency. From the data we identify the need to design reforms of the employment system that combine productivity gains, along with improvements in organizational structures and management methodologies.