Por Redaccion 
Gijón will become the national epicenter of the professional cleaning industry on May 9th from 10:00 to 14:00, at the Universidad Laboral de Gijón. During a day, business and political leaders, experts in various fields, and professionals from the sector will gather to analyze the main challenges facing this industry in the current economic and labor context, with the aim of demanding urgent solutions that guarantee the sustainability of this essential service. An essential service that employs more than half a million people in Spain, contributes 1.07% of the national GDP, and acts as a crucial link for the functioning of other sectors.
Under the slogan ‘Let’s dialogue: Challenges and opportunities of the cleaning sector in 2025’, the event will discuss topics relevant to the sector such as public procurement, reduction of working hours, labor absenteeism, or the difficulty in attracting workers to the sector. «We are facing a period of great political, economic, and labor tensions that affect our sector in a very special way.
This meeting aims to promote constructive dialogue among the various sector stakeholders, demand solutions, and strengthen the role of cleaning companies as providers of an essential service for health and the economy,» explains Afelin’s president, Jesús Martín, who believes that this meeting «comes at a key moment to reflect on the future of the sector and defend its strategic value in society.»
AN ESSENTIAL, YET INVISIBLE SECTOR
In this sense, another objective of the meeting will be to make visible a strategic and vital sector in the value chain of other sectors.
The pandemic highlighted the crucial role of professional cleaning as a guarantee of public health and economic continuity. However, currently, the sector denounces an increasing invisibility by the authorities and calls for policies that ensure its sustainability in the medium and long term.