The last collective labor agreement was signed in 2018 between the trade unions and the employers for that year, 2019 and 2020
“If I had to pick only one piece of advice to give, it would be this: Always negotiate, and if negotiation becomes impossible, keep negotiating.” For example, the 23-year-old president of CEOE, José María Cuevas, said goodbye when he resigned from his position at the employers’ association.
An income pact is demanded in many areas, but the majority consider it impossible, partly because it has been left half empty following the government’s decisions on the increase in pensions, the increase in social security contributions and the agreement on civil servants. An income agreement is a global agreement that not only deals with salaries, but also affects all types of income – including pensions and civil service – and taxes.
But there is another way to negotiate wages: the famous AENC (Agreement for Employment and Collective Bargaining), which are not binding but serve as a guide and recommendation. The last AENC was signed in 2018 for 2018, 2019 and 2020. Although it is not in sight that the social agents will make it this year, with employer elections just around the corner and the recession looming. And yet it would be needed today more than ever.
European Central Bank Vice-President Luis de Guindos defends the 5% increases recorded in Europe as a way to avoid the increase in arrears and a financial crisis. For its part, the Bank of Spain is demanding that businesses and households agree “to share the costs so that they all accept a loss of real income”.
CC OO General Secretary Unai Sordo emphasizes that “Spain needs a salary agreement as a guideline for collective bargaining in the next two and a half years, assuming reasonable salary increases in 2022 and 2023, accompanied by commitments to increase purchasing power. to recover” . The general secretary of the UGT, Pepe Álvarez, also pleads for a new agreement: “We are not going to give up a new AENC. In Spain a lot of wealth is created and not distributed. And from the employers, they insist that the AENC “would be desirable” and not only to fix salary increases, but for many other things such as telecommuting, education, equality … but they blame the “rigid stances and rigid clauses” of the unions of “Prevent negotiations”, according to Olimpia del Águila, head of Social Security and Equality at CEOE.
However, the Civil Service Pact has led to a record change. The unions have waived full wage indexation with the CPI and replaced it with a limited link spread over several years. Ultimately, it accepts a loss of purchasing power when inflation is high. That they accept this is not unimportant, because the direct and total link with the IPC is the unaffordable condition for the employers. The unions justify the agreement on civil servants because the 35-hour working week has also been agreed. “If the employer agrees to the 35-hour day, we can adjust the salary reclaim,” says the secretary of Trade Union Action of CC OO.
The 2012 AENC agreed on a salary review linked to GDP growth. “It was a great example of the responsibility of social agents,” said Juan Pablo Risk, responsible partner of EY Insights and former Secretary of State for Employment at Fátima Báñez, who hopes that this responsibility will be shown once again to come to an income agreement “where everyone should contribute.” And he stresses that with the rise in social security contributions, the government has eaten up some of the margin companies would have for higher wage increases.
Eight out of ten companies have seen their production costs increase, but only 38% have passed this on in the selling price. Still, according to the Bank of Spain, corporate margins have returned to 2019 levels. Meanwhile, the OECD warns that Spain, along with Greece, will be the country where real wages will fall the most due to inflation: down 4, 5% compared to the 2.6% decline in Germany or 0.6% in the US.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
