Spanish inequality widens

THE latest recession has hit the entire world, but in Spain the blow has been particularly hard.

Spain is the country where inequality has increased the most since 2006, according to the Global Wage Report conducted by the International Labour Organisation.

The wages in Spain dropped for four years in a row between 2010 and 2013. As a result of this negative trend, Spanish families lost an average 17 per cent of their purchasing power between 2006 and 2010.

But the crisis has not treated everyone equally. While those with higher wages have only seen their purchasing power reduced by 4 per cent, citizens with lower salaries have lost up to 43 per cent.

Spanish women still earn 17 per cent less than men, while immigrants receive an average of 30 per cent less than a local.