Spain Proposes Moving Fiestas to Mondays
January 13th, 2012
August 15th (Fiesta de la Asunción), November 1st (Día de Todos Los Santos) and December 6th (Fiesta de la Constitución) were the three holidays proposed by employers and unions to be moved to Mondays, in an attempt to bolster the productivity of Spanish companies, El Mundo reported this week.
This is reflected in the document that both parties have passed to the Government on its labour agreements, which also suggests that New Year, Christmas, Spain’s National Day (October 12th) and Labour Day (May 1st) remain unchanged in the calendar.
In addition, the Spanish Business Confederation (CEOE) and workers and trade unions (UGT and CCOO) advocate maintaining and not abolishing early retirement, and defend it in the paper on labour reforms which has been sent to the Ministry of Employment and Social Security.
In the text of the agreement, the president of the CEOE, Juan Rosell, and the general secretaries of the UGT, Candido Mendez and CCOO, Ignacio Fernández Toxo, reflected on the need to continue with early retirement because it facilitates the maintenance of employment and the rejuvenation of the workforce.
Paloma Lopez, Head of Employment of the CCOO explained that maintaining the right to early retirement “improves the employment rate among workers of 50 years and above”, and the incorporation of young people into the labour market.
Lopez said that the social partners have been eager to incorporate this item into the agreement after the Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, announced in his inauguration speech to parliament his intention to abolish early retirement “except in very exceptional circumstances.”
Rajoy said that the Government would be considering measures “to put a stop to the abusive practice” of making unemployment benefits in the final working years a mechanism for disguised early retirement.
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