May 2019

 
     
 

LABOUR LAW

LEGISLATIVE AND CASE LAW DEVELOPMENTS

 
     
 

1. COMPATIBILITY OF THE CONTRIBUTORY RETIREMENT PENSION WITH CREATIve ARTISTIC ACTIVITIES

Royal Decree 302/2019 of 26 April regulating the compatibility of the contributory retirement pension and creative artistic activities, which develops the second final provision of Royal Decree 26/2018 of 28 December approving urgent measures on artistic creativity and cinematography

Royal Decree 302/2019 of 26 April regulates the compatibility of the contributory retirement pension with earnings obtained from creative artistic activities (royalties).

2. AMENDMENT OF THE REGULATION ON THE SPECIAL AGREEMENT WITH THE GENERAL TREASURY OF the SOCIAL SECURITY FOR PEOPLE ABOVE 55 YEARS OF AGE

Order TMS/397/2019 of 4 April modifying Order TAS/2865/2003 of 13 October regulating the special agreement in the Social Security system

Order TMS/397/2019 of 4 April amended the regulations governing the social security contributions that must be paid in respect to employees above 55 years old who are made redundant as a result of a collective dismissal.

3. DIFFERENCE IN TREATMENT BETWEEN EMPLOYEES WITH CONTRACTS FOR A SPECIFIC PROJECT AND INDEFINITE CONTRACTS IN COLLECTIVE DISMISSALS

Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (Second Chamber) of 11 April 2019, joined Cases C-29/18, C-30/18 and C-44/18.

The Court of Justice of the European Union has upheld a national regulation stating that severance payments for employees with indefinite contracts resulting from dismissals on objective grounds can be higher than severance payments made to employees with contracts for a specific project.

4. LEGAL nature of DIRECTORS’ RELATIONSHIP WITH THE COMPANY

Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (First Chamber) of 11 April 2019, Case C-603/17

The Court of Justice of the European Union has held that a contract between a company and a natural person who carries out functions as a member of the board of directors does not create a relationship of subordination between them and, consequently, cannot be classified as an individual employment contract for the purposes of European Union law.

5. COMPANIES CAN CLAIM AGAINST THEIR FORMER EMPLOYEES REGARDING DEBTS DESPITE THE EXISTENCE OF A SETTLEMENT AND RELEASE DOCUMENT

Judgment of the Supreme Court (plenary session of the Employment Chamber) of 30 January 2019

The Supreme Court has held that a settlement and release document drafted by a company, and with its seal, did not imply a waiver regarding specific amounts that were owed by the employee to the company and were not mentioned in that document.

6. EMPLOYERs MUST PAY THE WORKERS OF A TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT AGENCY THE SAME salary BENEFITS AS THOSE PAID TO THE EMPLOYEES OF THE COMPANY

Judgment of the National Court (Employment Chamber) of 7 March 2019

The National Court has held that performing specific services by means of workers from temporary employment agencies must be a means of addressing temporary needs and not used as a way to reduce labour costs. Thus, salary benefits not specifically regulated in the applicable collective bargaining agreement must also be received by the workers from the temporary employment agency.

7. TIME SPENT AVAILABLE ON CALL IN A DIGITAL SERVICES COMPANY DOES NOT CONSTITUTE EFFECTIVE WORKING TIME

Judgment of the National Court (Employment Chamber) of 20 September 2018

The National Court concluded that time spent available on call cannot be considered as effective working time because, thanks to the technical equipment available to the employees (mobile phones and laptops), the employees’ freedom of movement is not limited and they do not lose the possibility of resting or dedicating time to their personal and social affairs.

8. EMPLOYEES ARE ENTITLED TO HAVE THE AMOUNT of THEIR MEAL ALLOWANCE ANNUALLY UPDATED TO THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT EXEMPT FROM PERSONAL INCOME TAX

Judgment of the National Court (Employment Chamber) of 4 July 2018

The National Court interpreted an agreement between a company and its employees in the sense that the meal allowance amount must be updated to the maximum permitted amount and be exempt from taxation under Personal Income Tax.

9. NULLITY OF THE DISMISSAL OF A WHISTLEBLOWER

Judgment of the High Court of Justice of the Autonomous Region of Valencia (Employment Chamber) of 2 April 2019

The High Court of Justice of the Autonomous Region of Valencia has held that a dismissal of an employee, who reported irregularities within a company to its management on several occasions, was carried out in retaliation for those actions. As a result, the dismissal was classified as void.

10. VOUCHERS FOR LANGUAGE LESSONS ARE NOT, AS A GENERAL RULE, EXEMPT FROM PERSONAL INCOME TAX FOR THE RETRAINING OF EMPLOYEES

Binding Consultation V3207-18 to the Sub-Directorate General of Taxes for Personal Income Tax of 18 December 2018

The Sub-Directorate General of Taxes for Personal Income Tax has concluded that “language lesson vouchers” given to employees to pay for the cost of training in language schools are not, as a general rule, exempt from taxation under Personal Income Tax.

 

 
   
 

In case of any doubts or comments, please do not hesitate to contact

           
 

Ignacio García-Perrote
ignacio.garcia-perrote@uria.com

 

Mario Barros
mario.barros@uria.com

 

Juan Reyes
juan.reyes@uria.com

           
 

Ana Alos
ana.alos@uria.com


 

Jorge Gorostegui
jorge.gorostegui@uria.com

 

Raúl Boo
raul.boo@uria.com

 
     
 

The information contained in this Newsletter is of a general nature and does not constitute legal advice

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