Díaz advances that the paid permits for those affected by DANA will not have established deadlines

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MADRID 8 Nov. () –

The second vice president and Minister of Labor and Social Economy, Yolanda Díaz, announced this Friday that the paid permits that will be granted to workers affected by DANA who cannot go to their workplace will not have an established period of days, except in the case of leave due to the death of a family member, which is extended to five days counting from the funeral.

“We have decided to set an indeterminate date, because the causes are very different. Therefore, we are not going to set a deadline, except only in the case of death leave, which we extend to five days from the day of the funeral. It is the only deadline that we are going to incorporate. The rest of the permits, that is, justified absences from work, will be done on an indefinite basis,” said the vice president.

The reason for not incorporating deadlines into these permits, he explained, is that it is not possible to know what date the communication routes, the connectivity of mobile phones, landlines or water will be operational, among other circumstances that may prevent workers to go to their workplace or telework.

Díaz, in statements to TVE reported by Europa Press, recalled that these paid permits will be, unlike what happened in the pandemic, non-recoverable, that is, the workers affected by DANA will not have to recover the hours or days in which they that they have not gone to work.

These permits are part of the ‘labor shield’ that is expected to be approved by the Council of Ministers next Monday, which will be held a day earlier than usual due to the agenda of the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez.

This shield will have retroactive effects from October 29 and will also include the ERTE, already available since the labor reform, an extraordinary subsidy for domestic workers and the implementation of the Me Cuida Plan, among other measures.

But “the big news,” Díaz highlighted, will be the “list” of paid leave that those affected by DANA will be able to avail of, with “full” salary receipt.

The reasons for taking advantage of these permits are varied: lack of connectivity, search for missing relatives, destruction of housing and work materials or caring for relatives, among them.

“What we have done is adjust a multitude of causes precisely to the granting of paid leave, which is why I want to send a message of peace of mind to workers. For example, when there are mobility problems, coverage is provided for paid leave. Therefore, workers should be calm, because they will receive and contribute for effective work as if nothing had happened,” Díaz stressed.

At the same time, the minister has encouraged workers to use existing reporting channels, such as the Labor Inspection, if their rights are violated.

NO LAY OFF

The vice president has indicated that the labor measures that the Government is going to adopt for those affected by DANA “will not be subject to the geographical limitations of the catastrophe”, since you can live in an area affected by the storm and work outside it or vice versa.

In the event that there are mechanisms that allow people to go to work (for example, the provision of a bus by the company if they do not have a private car and have to travel), the vice president has indicated that they can always go to work. that there are no risks for the worker.

“The mandate we have given is that, if you cannot go physically, you should telework. But if there are mechanisms to be able to safely, without risks to your life, of course you can go to work,” he stressed.

Díaz has also taken the opportunity to ask companies to comply with the law and protect their workers. “I am monitoring companies that are not complying with current legislation on a daily basis,” said the vice president, who stressed that the Labor Inspection “knows exactly which companies are complying and which are not.”

The minister has reiterated that the ‘labor shield’ for those affected by DANA will include the annulment of the dismissal. “I want to send a message to companies, it is about maintaining jobs, no one should be fired. The Government of Spain is deploying all the mechanisms,” the vice president stressed.

Asked about the management of the crisis caused by DANA, the minister stated that “public services and alerts have worked” and that all of this is documented.

“I think things are clear, the services worked, the alerts worked and, presumably, I think some things could have been avoided,” he stressed.

In any case, and although “he has an opinion on this management”, he has indicated that, like the Government of Spain, his attention is focused right now “on saving companies, the self-employed, workers and, most importantly, saving lives and emotionally accompanying to the people of Valencia”.