Spain

Spain presents a number of challenges for the global business in terms of understanding its diversity in culture and language and how its labour relations work. Spain’s labour laws are primarily regulated by the Workers’ Statute and its labour relations work through a complex mix of Government organisations (the Spanish Labour and Social Security Inspectorate and National Public Employment Service (SEPE), works councils, Trade Unions and national and provincial level Collective Bargaining Agreements), often with the result that an employee’s terms and conditions can vary by region, for example, entitlement to statutory holidays.

Other interesting aspects of Spanish labour law include the administrative requirement to register contracts of employment with the relevant Government organisation and the specific legal status of a ‘senior manager’, which varies from the normal employee status.