The Ministry of Labor has finalized its proposal to increase the minimum interprofessional wage (SMI) for next year, a 4% increase, which would place it at 1,123.2 euros per month starting in January, which for the moment is rejected both by employers and by unions. In the relatively brief meeting that the social agents held this morning with Labor, the ministry specified for the first time a more or less expected percentage increase. It is in this environment that in recent days it had positioned itself.
However, there has been no agreement. The employers’ association is the most forceful in its refusal, insisting on its initial proposal formulated on November 22, the 3% increase, and also demanding the two conditions with which it accompanied it: modifying the legislation to allow the increase of the SMI in contracts of execution of the public sector and also a 20% reduction of the business quota in the agricultural sector.
Sources from the CEOE have insisted this morning on its great condition, indexing public contracts to the SMI and that its evolution is on par with the general framework of collective bargaining.
This demand, the indexation of public contracts, is shared by the unions, and Labor does not view it with bad eyes, but the problem is that it is not their responsibility. It basically depends on the Treasury, now you will have to negotiate it with this department.
The second vice president and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, sees an agreement close. “I am convinced that we are close to reaching an agreement. The claims between the employers and the unions are not very far apart and for the good of the country, we will be able to achieve it,” said Díaz, adding that he will convey to the competent ministries the request to modify public contracts to allow the indexation of prices.
On the part of the unions, this 4% approach is not accepted either, which is lower than the CC.OO objectives. and UGT. However, the two unions have pointed out that they could end up accepting the figure depending on how the negotiation develops.
Fernando Luján has stated that “if we reach an agreement that guarantees that the SMI covers the losses due to the increase in prices and satisfies our European commitments, UGT can be found on this path. For his part, Mari Cruz Vicente, has declared that “for CC.OO. The increase should have been around 5%, but we are willing to negotiate.” An element that Vicente has highlighted is his opposition to the 20% bonus for the rural sector if there is no commitment from the sector to comply with collective agreements and apply the SMI in agreements where it does not apply.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Labor calculates that this time the agreement is within reach, and that it would be to return to the path of consensus, widely practiced during the pandemic, but shortly after. In the case of the SMI, the latest increases have been without the support of the CEOE. To seek a three-way agreement, we must go back to 2020, when it increased from 900 to 950 euros.
Therefore, consensus is a great object of desire but without being assured, with a CEOE that systematically criticizes the equation of the SMI with 60% of the average salary, due to the differentiation between the situation of many Spanish provinces. She maintains that in many territories it is already above this percentage and that it harms the competitiveness of companies.