Spanish Employment Contracts, Salary, and Working Hours

Posted on Apr 6, 2025 in Law & Jurisprudence

Contract Formalization

Upon signing an employment contract, the worker agrees to its terms. A contract containing fraudulent or legally unfair terms is considered invalid. After signing, the employer must give one copy to the worker and another to the workers’ representatives. Within ten days of signing, a copy must be sent by the employer to the employment office.

Trial Period

A trial period can be established when signing the contract. If the contract doesn’t specify it, the relevant collective agreement or the Workers’ Statute dictates the terms. During this period, either party can end the employment relationship without notice or compensation. Workers on trial have the same rights and obligations as other employees, except for termination rules specific to the trial period.

Trial Period Duration

The maximum duration of the trial period is:

  • 6 months for qualified technicians (graduates).
  • 2 months for other workers.
  • 3 months for other workers in companies with fewer than 25 employees.

Becoming a Permanent Employee

A contract may be presumed permanent and full-time under certain conditions:

  • If work is performed without a written contract when one is legally required.
  • If the employer fails to register the employee with Social Security (SS) within the legal timeframe.
  • If the contract is entered into fraudulently according to law.

Salary Definition

Salary is the remuneration an employer pays a worker in exchange for their services.

Types of Salary Payment

Salary can be paid in two ways:

  1. Monetary Payment: Via cash, check, or bank transfer.
  2. Payment in Kind: Non-monetary benefits, such as goods or services. Examples include:
    • Providing housing to the worker.
    • Providing a company car.
    • Offering low-interest loans.
    • Paying for employee or family studies.
    • Paying insurance premiums.
    • Contributing to pension plans.

Note: Remuneration in kind cannot exceed 30% of the worker’s total salary earnings.

Salary Payment Procedures

Wages must be paid punctually on the agreed date, with payment intervals not exceeding one month. Payment should typically occur at the workplace, unless otherwise agreed. Workers have the right to request advances on wages for work already performed. Payment must be made in legal tender (cash), or via check or bank transfer, as agreed. Late payment by the employer incurs an interest charge of 10% per annum on the amount owed. The payslip (payroll document) must clearly detail all income items and deductions.

Working Hours (Workday)

Working hours refer to the time a worker dedicates to their work activity. The standard maximum working week is 40 hours of effective work, calculated on average over the year. (Note: An accident occurring while commuting to or from work is generally considered a work accident if the route and timing are usual and reasonable). The maximum standard workday is 9 hours, unless collective agreements or specific contracts establish different distributions (always respecting minimum rest periods). There must be a minimum rest period of 12 hours between the end of one workday and the beginning of the next. This daily rest period cannot be accumulated. Workers under 18 years old have a maximum workday of 8 hours, including any training time.

Shift Work

Shift work is any form of work organization where workers succeed each other at the same workstations according to a certain pattern, including rotating patterns, which may be continuous or discontinuous, involving the need for workers to perform work at different hours over a given period of days or weeks.

Night Work

Night work is defined as work performed between 10:00 PM and 6:00 AM. A night worker is one who normally performs at least 3 hours of their daily working time during this night period, or is likely to perform a significant part of their annual work during this period. Night work is prohibited for workers under 18. The workday for night workers cannot exceed an average of 8 hours per day over a reference period of fifteen days, unless specified otherwise by collective agreement or law for specific activities.

Reduced Working Hours

Workers may be entitled to reduced working hours in specific situations:

a) Caregiving Responsibilities

Workers have the right to a reduction in working hours, with a proportional reduction in salary, for the following reasons:

  • For direct care of a child under 12 years old.
  • For direct care of a relative up to the second degree of consanguinity or affinity (e.g., parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, spouse/partner’s parents/siblings) who, due to age, accident, illness, or disability (physical, mental, or sensory), cannot care for themselves and does not perform paid activity.

The reduction is typically between one-eighth and one-half of the workday.

b) Breastfeeding / Infant Care

  • For the care of an infant under 9 months old, workers are entitled to one hour of absence from work per day, which can be taken as a single block or divided into two half-hour periods.
  • Alternatively, the worker may choose to reduce their workday by half an hour at the beginning or end.
  • This right can be exercised indistinctly by either parent if both work, but only one parent can exercise it if they choose to do so simultaneously.
  • This specific reduction for infant care does not entail a loss of salary. The possibility of accumulating this time into full days may exist if provided for in collective agreements or by agreement with the employer.