Spain’s Labour Law reform – BDO Abogados
On February 10th, 2012, the Cabinet approved Royal Decree-Law nº 3/2012 regarding urgent measures to reform the Spanish labour market. In the short-term, the primary objective is to slow the pace of the job losses in Spain, and to lay the foundations for sustained growth and the creation of stable employment as quickly as possible. Company flexibility mechanisms have been designed and introduced to promote the preservation of employment, so that dismissal is a last resort for the employer. Notwithstanding this, external flexibility has also been modified to harmonise labour legislation on dismissals within the European Union. The labour reform also modernises collective negotiation to adapt it to the different and specific needs of companies and employees.
On February 10th, 2012, the Cabinet approved Royal Decree-Law nº 3/2012 regarding urgent measures to reform the Spanish labour market.
In the short-term, the primary objective is to slow the pace of the job losses in Spain, and to lay the foundations for sustained growth and the creation of stable employment as quickly as possible.
Company flexibility mechanisms have been designed and introduced to promote the preservation of employment, so that dismissal is a last resort for the employer. Notwithstanding this, external flexibility has also been modified to harmonise labour legislation on dismissals within the European Union.
The labour reform also modernises collective negotiation to adapt it to the different and specific needs of companies and employees. Equally, it gives freelancers and small and medium-sized companies more flexibility and capacity to adapt.
This reform encourages the involvement of all those who can collaborate in the job-finding process and increases opportunities for the unemployed, paying special attention to the young and those in long-term unemployment. Moreover, for the first time, it recognises a training entitlement for each employee in order to improve employability.
Raquel de la Viña is the Employment Law Department Manager at BDO Abogados in Madrid. She can be reached at raquel.delavina@bdo.es
