Socio-economic context of Poland and Spain with an overview of the unemployment phenomenon

Abstract

Unemployment is an insanely important concept for the entire national economy. It affects both individuals and the economy in general. And it is in the interest of every market participant to keep unemployment as low as possible, as this brings mutual benefits. Lower unemployment means that more people are working, and thus have money to live on and do not have to use the social assistance offered by the state. Another benefit can be seen in the fact that when more people work, more goods and services enter the market, and thus market competitiveness improves, allowing the consumer to get a better product at a better price. The article presents the economic transition in Poland and Spain. Pointing out important dates and events that were significant in the subsequent functioning of the economy. Changes like the economic transition at the turn of 1989/90, and also joining the EU were crucial for the formation of the Polish market economy. In the later part, the unemployment figures of both countries for 2016–2021 were analyzed. The trends of the indicator values were highlighted and compared with the other country.