Brussels takes up the file against Spain due to lack of sanctions against the abuse of interim workers

Gives a period of two months to respond and correct the deficiencies indicated.

BRUSSELS, Oct. 3 () –

The European Commission reported this Thursday on the file opened against Spain for not having adequately transferred into national legislation the European rules that require sanctioning abuses due to successive use of fixed-term contracts in the public sector.

Brussels criticizes the lack of protection for certain types of temporary contracts in the public sector, so that, for example, a worker receives the same compensation regardless of whether he has been employed with successive temporary contracts for 20 or 30 years.

It also warns that if a worker who has overlapped contracts for two decades must resign to change positions or to care for a family member, for example, he or she is not entitled to any compensation even if a court declares the succession of fixed-term contracts abusive.

The infringement process thus begins with the sending to the Spanish authorities of a complementary letter of summons that indicates the non-compliance and gives the Government a period of two months to take measures to correct the situation.

If they do not do so, the community services will be able to take the next step in the sanctioning file, with the sending of a reasoned opinion, which gives a new period of dialogue to amend the situation before deciding whether to raise the case before the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).

In this case, the community services clarify that the notice is in the form of a “complementary” letter in which the legislative changes that have already been carried out in Spain in response to a first file initiated by Brussels in 2025 have been taken into account. .

In the opinion of the Community Executive, the new national rules “still do not sufficiently address the problems detected”, particularly with regard to the effectiveness of sanctioning measures.

For this reason, the Commission explains in a statement, Spain now has a period of two months to respond and correct the deficiencies indicated.