Bill would let workers ask to end their contracts if the employer does nothing

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The bill would bring back a procedure that existed before the 2012 labor reform and was removed then. It applied when the company does not start a collective dismissal and workers suffer serious harm as a result.
2. The bill would add a section 12 to Article 51 of the Workers' Statute. If it can reasonably be assumed that the employer's failure to start a collective dismissal could cause harm that is impossible or very hard to repair, workers, through their representatives, could ask the labor authority to declare the end of their employment relationship. The authority would decide what steps and reports are needed, including one from the Labor Inspectorate, and would rule within the deadlines set for the consultation period.
3. The bill would add a paragraph h) to Article 208 of the General Social Security Law. A ruling by the labor authority issued at the workers' request would then count as a ground for ending the contract for Social Security purposes.
4. If passed, the law would take effect the day after its publication in the Official State Gazette (Boletín Oficial del Estado).

Who it affects

• Workers at loss-making companies that owe wages or social security contributions and do not start a collective dismissal: They could ask the labor authority to end their contracts so they can access unemployment benefits sooner.
• Workers' representatives: They would submit the request to the labor authority.
• The competent labor authority: It would have to rule within the consultation-period deadlines, with a report from the Labor Inspectorate.

Words worth knowing

Expediente de regulación de empleo (ERE)

A procedure to end or suspend employment contracts for economic, technical, organizational, or production reasons.

Despido colectivo

Collective dismissal: ending the contracts of a large number of a company's workers.

Autoridad laboral

The public authority that oversees and decides on labor matters.

Inspección de Trabajo

The public body that enforces labor rules.

Prestaciones de desempleo

Unemployment benefits: money the state pays to people who have lost their job.

It summarizes the text as it was introduced. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries