The repeal of the labor reform and seven other measures planned by the new Government

In the document of the pre-agreement reached between the PSOE and Unidas Podemos to form a Government, which will finally be formed when Pedro Sánchez is elected president with 167 yes votes, 165 no votes and 18 abstentions, reference is made to the repeal of the 2012 labour reform.

However, the approved text does not mention the plans to reintroduce the compensation of 45 days per year worked with a maximum of 42 monthly payments in the event of unfair dismissal, which was reduced to 33 days per year worked with a maximum of 24 monthly payments with the 2012 labour reform.

With this measure, Spain approached its European partners, since no country in the European Union contemplated a severance payment as high as the one that was no longer applied with the 2012 labor reform.
It is more than likely that, if it was not expressly mentioned in this agreement, this measure will remain in force, since, even so, Spain has one of the least flexible labor markets in the entire OECD and is, among developed countries, the one that It has a higher dismissal cost for workers with more than 10 years of seniority.

Nadia Calviño, who will occupy an economic Vice Presidency in the Government of Pedro Sánchez, already anticipated on November 19, before the agreement between the PSOE and Unidas Podemos was signed, that the cost of dismissal in Spain is not as cheap as critics criticize. unions and Unidas Podemos, trying to reassure business owners.

Therefore, with regard to the foreseeable repeal of the 2012 labor reform and the modifications in labor matters, it is advisable to take into consideration only the points that were agreed upon in the Government agreement and try to be attentive to the labor reforms that may occur.

In this sense, in relation to the repeal of the labor reform, the points that are intended to be repealed urgently are:

• The possibility of dismissal due to absenteeism caused by sick leave.
• The limitations on the temporal scope of the collective agreement, making it go beyond the provisions contained therein after the end of its validity and until the negotiation of a new one.
• The application priority of company agreements over sectoral agreements.
• Article 42.1 of the Workers' Statute on labor contracting and subcontracting will be modified in order to limit subcontracting to specialized services outside the main activity of the company.
• The ability of the company to unilaterally modify the conditions of the contract will be limited.
• The mechanism for non-application of collective agreements will be reviewed, directing it to salary reductions linked to serious economic causes.
  Furthermore, it is also advisable to be attentive to the employment promotion measures that may be introduced, especially in relation to the rural areas of empty Spain, since the Government agreement makes reference to the implementation of a national strategy facing depopulation.

Other reforms that were agreed are:

• The modification of the Workers' Statute to protect them from the social, technological and ecological challenges of the 21st century.
• Increase in the interprofessional minimum wage until it progressively reaches 60 % of the average wage in Spain.
• Review of training contracts, as well as the approval and development of the Intern Statute so that its use responds to exclusively training purposes, its remuneration is improved, the chaining of internship periods is limited and a maximum percentage of interns in companies is determined. .
• Employment contracts will be simplified and reorganized, part-time hiring will be monitored, fraudulent use of temporary hiring will be sanctioned, and the use of discontinuous fixed contracts for cyclical and seasonal activities will be favored.
• The regime of infractions and sanctions applicable to possible non-compliance by companies will be tightened.
• The causes of dismissal will be reviewed to make the definition of the economic, technical, organizational or production causes more precise and the role of the ITSS and the labor authority in the control of collective dismissals and in other employment regulation files will be reinforced. .
• New technologies will be used and big data from various administrative units will be used to fight against labor fraud, especially in relation to the abuse of temporary contracting linked to the same worker or the same job, to the control of false self-employment and the fraudulent use of part-time contracts with undeclared hours.