Over half, or 55% of companies in Spain report difficulties in finding job candidates, according to a report from Randstad Spain.

The report, which analyses why job vacancies are difficult to fill, also showed that 66% of companies have vacancies in their staff. Furthermore, there is a shortage of talent, mainly in jobs that require highly qualified employees (52%) or vocational training (53%). During the past year, 91% of companies have carried out different search practices to find new employees.

As for the reasons that lead to the difficulties in finding candidates to fill vacancies, changes in organisational structures was the most cited reason (59%), followed by the emergence of new technologies (58%) and new work patterns (57%).

Among the most sought after professional profiles in the Spanish labor market are those with STEM training (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics). Despite this, there is a deficit of professionals with these skills. Vacancies for doctors were found to be the most difficult to cover, followed by IT specialists, buying and selling executives, and engineers.

The research also found that 36% of companies take more than two months to cover these hard-to-fill vacancies.