The Ministry of Labor concludes negotiations with employers to reform the law on the prevention of occupational risks and the regulation of prevention services and will seek an agreement with the unions. This was announced by the Secretary of State for Labour, Joaquín Pérez Rey, who expressed “enormous disappointment” towards CEOE and Cepyme for their rejection of the ministry’s proposal. “I have never seen such a dilatory, so irrelevant attitude of delaying, avoiding, not moving forward”, denounced the number two of Yolanda Díaz’s ministry, who accused the business associations of prolonging the dialogue in an “unfair” way while waiting for the government to “fall”. The unions UGT and CC OO also accused the employers of “blocking” the negotiation. CEOE and Cepyme did not show up after Wednesday’s meeting, another after 21 months of negotiations.
Pérez Rey recalled that in 2023 his ministry reached an agreement with unions and employers for the Spanish Strategy for Safety and Health at Work and expressed the opinion that this reform is a further step in the same line. “This is a regulation that cannot be postponed. Every year more than 800 people lose their lives at work. We are playing with the lives and physical and mental integrity of many people”, commented the Secretary of State. Likewise, he indicated that the employers’ association told the table that the text under discussion was “bureaucratic” and that “there should be no talk about climate change” or “mental health”. “As if people don’t die of heatstroke every summer and as if psychosocial risks aren’t among those that hit hardest,” the Labor negotiator protested.
“I can come to only one conclusion,” continued Pérez Rey, “and that is that the employers are trying to tell us that they continue to negotiate to see if the government falls. It cannot be explained otherwise. They have given unacceptable excuses, rejecting aspects that they signed up to in the Health Strategy.” The Secretary of State for Labor has made it known that he hopes to reach an agreement with the factories before the end of the year and underlined that the possible agreement is very advanced.
Pérez Rey underlined that part of this reform may be approved by decree, without parliamentary support, but that the support of Congress will still be sought to carry out a complete reform. The Chamber had already rejected the stellar change in work envisaged by the ministry, namely the reduction of the working day to 37 and a half hours, in September.
From January to September, 547 people died at work, 5% less than last year, but with a significant increase in some sectors such as construction.
What does the Work propose?
The text that Labor has proposed to the unions (three drafts have been proposed) proposes to create the figure of the “territorial prevention agent”, a person designated by unions and employers who monitors professional risks in workplaces with fewer than ten workers. It is in these tiny companies, the power plants report, that the majority of workplace accidents are concentrated. The Ministry also proposes to give greater attention to companies that commission this service from other companies, known as third-party prevention services. The unions believe it is normal that these bodies, despite being specialized in the matter, are overloaded and poorly monitored.
The Labor approach, however, provides that the employer must establish its own prevention service when the company has more than 300 workers (compared to the current 500) and provides for group construction with an even greater requirement in this regard, which is claimed by 150 (previously 250). Monitoring of preventive actions among self-employed workers is also strengthened.
Other changes proposed by Labor focus on addressing the climate crisis, gender and age perspectives. It also underlines the right to digital disconnection and that the employer will be able to undertake prevention personally only with a staff of ten employees or less, instead of the current 25.
(New in development. There will be an extension soon)
