1. DIRECTOR IS ENTITLED TO CONTRACTUALLY STIPULATED SEVERANCE PAYMENT DESPITE NOT BEING SET OUT UNDER THE COMPANY’S ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION
Judgment of the Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court dated 17 December 2015
The Supreme Court has held that a sole shareholder who understood the remuneration system for directors on the basis that he himself set it, cannot subsequently object to the severance payment arguing that it was not set out under the company’s articles of association.
back to
top
2. DUTY TO PAY BENEFITS’ SURCHARGE DUE TO LACK OF APPROPRIATE SAFETY MEASURES IS PASSED ON TO THE SUCCESSOR COMPANY
Judgment of the Labour Chamber of the Supreme Court dated 15 December 2015
The Supreme Court acknowledged that the responsibility to pay benefits’ surcharge due to lack of appropriate safety measures is passed on to the company that took over the company in which the deceased worker rendered services, even though the employee did not ultimately work for the successor company.
back to
top
3. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT CLAUSE THAT ESTABLISHED A LOWER SALARY FOR YOUNG WORKERS AS A MEASURE TO PROMOTE EMPLOYMENT HELD TO BE VOID
Judgment of the Labour Chamber of the Supreme Court dated 24 November 2015
The Supreme Court has held that a clause in the Collective Bargaining Agreement for the Catering Sector of Catalonia, which modified remuneration for new employees under 35 years old provided that the current economic crisis continued and Spain’s unemployment rate exceeded 15 per cent, was void.
back to
top
4. THE JOINT COMMITTEE OF A COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT IS FORMED BY THE EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATIVES WHO SIGNED IT
Judgment of the Labour Chamber of the Supreme Court dated 11 November 2015
The Supreme Court holds that when setting up the joint committee of the national collective bargaining agreement for travel agencies, the overriding criterion is the parties’ capacity to represent on the date they signed the collective bargaining agreement.
back to
top
5. A REDUCTION IN THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES DOES NOT ENTITLE THE EMPLOYER TO UNILATERALLY REVOKE THE REPRESENTATIVE ROLE OF EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATIVES
Judgment of the Labour Chamber of the National Court dated 23 December 2015
The National Court held that since the closure of certain workplaces only had an administrative impact, the unilateral decision of the company to revoke the representative role of some employees constituted an infringement of their rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining.
back to
top
6. EMPLOYERS MUST IMPLEMENT A WORKING DAY REGISTER TO MONITOR OVERTIME
Judgment of the Labour Chamber of the National Court dated 4 December 2015
The National Court has held that a working day register is compulsory to determine whether workers perform overtime.
back to
top
7. THE 40% TAX REDUCTION FOR IRREGULAR EMOLUMENTS DOES NOT APPLY TO ONE-OFF RELOCATION ALLOWANCES
Judgment of the Central Economic-Administrative Court dated 10 September 2015
In a case in which a worker had been paid (i) a one-off relocation allowance and (ii) a two-year monthly housing allowance of EUR 750, the Central Economic-Administrative Court ruled that in order to determine whether or not the relocation allowance is irregular, both amounts must be considered together. It ruled that because the amounts were paid over multiple tax period, they were regular and therefore did not qualify for the 40% tax reduction for irregular emoluments.
back to
top
1. DIRECTOR IS ENTITLED TO CONTRACTUALLY STIPULATED SEVERANCE PAYMENT DESPITE NOT BEING SET OUT UNDER THE COMPANY’S ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION