The way a well -known company in Portugal generates the rest days of its workers in Spain was recently analyzed in court. At issue is the compensation of days off when they coincide with holidays, especially for employees who work with continuous times from Monday to Sunday.
Conflict between company and unions
The General Confederation of Labor (CGT) and the ASC Union contested Zara’s practice in Spain, which considered that workers with fixed off during the week would already enjoy the holiday if he coincided with his rest day, explains the news. For this reason, the company did not attribute a new day off.
Supreme Court decision
The Spanish Supreme Court gave reason to the unions, establishing that workers are entitled to an additional rest day if the holiday coincides with their weekly day off. The measure applies to employees with rotating hours and fixed clearances between Monday and Friday, reports the same source.
The decision aims to ensure that all workers have the same number of effective rest days throughout the year, avoiding inequalities with those who rest on Sundays. The court declared that the practice of the company conflict with the principles of labor law.
Interpretation of labor norms
The Court appealed to Article 37.2 of the Workers Statute, which allows transferring holidays coincident with Sundays to Mondays, as evidence that holidays should be effectively enjoyed. It also cited Article 47 of the Real Decree 2001/1983, which provides for compensation when it is not possible to enjoy the rest days.
In the understanding of the Supreme, allowing the overlapping of holiday and weekly clearance without compensation leads to a reduction in the total number of rest days, which is not admissible.
Consequences for the company
The company, which has stores in a daily operation in the Madrid community, will now adapt its shifts and scales. The measure implies officially recognizing workers’ rights to compensation, adjusting the management of time off.
This interpretation may extend to other Spanish regions where there are similar practices and impact on other companies with similar operations.
Right to reinforced rest
The Court acknowledged that weekly rest and holidays are different and complementary rights, and that their coincidence should not harm the worker. By receiving the funds brought by the unions, the sentence reinforces the idea that the company has a duty to ensure equality in access to rest days.
According to the judgment, not compensating the coincidence between clearances and holidays would result in an unjustified reduction of time off, especially for workers with more intense hours.
Future implications
In addition to requiring the company’s current practice revision, the Court’s decision may serve as a reference to other similar cases in companies that operate with rotating hours. The Supreme Court also recognized the right to collective bargaining to regulate this compensation.
The decision establishes a relevant precedent with regard to the balance between labor duties and the right to rest.
The initial position of the Madrid Justice
Prior to the Supreme Court’s ruling, the Madrid Superior Court had rejected the CGT’s request. He argued that the company already attributed more rest days to affected workers, which, in its view, would compensate for the situation.
However, the Supreme considered that this compensation was not equivalent to the effective enjoyment of the holidays provided for in labor legislation.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF DECISION
With this decision, the company will have to grant a new rest day to workers whose holiday coincides with the weekly clearance. The measure should be integrated into the organization of shifts and may influence how business days are calculated.
This judgment may affect companies with daily operation and fixed shift models, as happens in many retail chains.
New legal framework
The Supreme considered that the lack of compensation represented a violation of labor rights, noting that the full enjoyment of the holidays should be guaranteed to all workers, regardless of their journey, also reports.
The decision states that weekly rest and holiday accumulation on one day cannot result in a loss of rights.
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