Yesterday, the Central Government took an important step to comply with the conditions that allow it to obtain the fourth payment of 10,000 million euros in full from the Recovery Plan. The Council of Ministers approved the decree-law reforming the unemployment benefit, an amendment that was rejected by Congress in January with the decisive vote against by Podemos, and which is now being resumed after Treball has agreed to introduce amendments important and to reach an agreement with the unions.
In the same decree, the prevalence of autonomous collective agreements over state ones has been incorporated, a condition that the PNB put in place to support the investiture of Pedro Sánchez. This modification of the structure of collective bargaining has been done with the opposition of both employers and unions. The CEOE has stated more than once that it is against the market unit, and in CC.OO. they see it as an intrusion by the central government. “Regulating the structure of collective bargaining without taking social agents into account is an interference in the autonomy of the parties”, says CC.OO. in a statement. “It should first go through social dialogue”, adds the UGT.
The processing of the unemployment benefit reform as a decree-law allows for its rapid application, so it wins points for Brussels to consider it a completed milestone, although it will need to obtain the endorsement of Parliament. In this legislature, the Spanish Government had as a principle to avoid decree laws, but in this case the haste has made them change their position.
Although the deadline for the pronouncement from Brussels ended on May 20, the European Commission will take more time to include an analysis of this subsidy reform. “The next few weeks”, sources from the Community Executive indicate.
“It is a radically feminist rule. Because of the impact it has and because working women are especially the recipients of the unemployment benefit”, said the second vice-president and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, when she presented the decision. And he added that the increase of up to 90 euros per month “is not a paycheck, it is a right”.
The reform includes increasing aid, expanding the number of beneficiaries and making it compatible with employment. In addition, the over-contributions for unemployed people over the age of 52 will not be reduced, the point that derailed the first attempt.
With regard to the benefits, the increase in the amount means that the subsidy will be 95% of the Iprem for the first six months (570 euros per month), 90% for the following six months (540 euros) and of the currently 80% the rest of the duration of the benefit (480 euros). With the reform, the subsidy will also reach temporary agricultural workers from all over the State and those younger than 45 without family burdens, in addition to victims of gender violence and returned emigrants.
On the other hand, in the same decree of the Central Government, the prevalence of regional agreements over state ones has been included again, as long as the conditions are more favorable for workers. It states that “collective agreements and interprofessional agreements of the autonomous community will have applied priority over any other sectoral agreement or agreement at state level”. It is added that the provincial agreements will also have priority, if this is provided for in the regional interprofessional agreements.