Sentences of interest in the labor field

Compensation for fixed-term workers

The Supreme Court [TS 20-05-2025] has confirmed that the compensation for dismissal of fixed-term workers is calculated based only on the periods of activity in which the employee has effectively provided services, excluding periods of inactivity or between campaigns. On the contrary, the calculation of the duration of the employment relationship does include periods of inactivity when applied:

• For economic rights and Social Security.
• To calculate salary supplements that accrue based on the periods worked (for example, a seniority supplement).

If the fixed-term worker has had previous temporary contracts in the same company and it is proven that they were entered into in fraud of the law, the compensation will include the temporary periods covered by those contracts.

Leave for exams

The Supreme Court [TS 04-06-2025] has resolved an issue regarding the duration of paid leave for attending exams when the collective agreement stipulates that such leave will be taken "during the days of the exams." In this context, it has been discussed whether the leave should be granted for the entire day, regardless of the work shift and whether the exam coincides with the employee's working hours.

The court has concluded that the leave extends throughout the day on which the exam takes place, not limited to the strictly necessary time for its completion. If it had been intended that the leave be limited to the time necessary to fulfill its purpose (taking the exam), the collective agreement should have explicitly stated so.

Compliance with the penalty

The Supreme Court [TS 11-06-2025] has established that the communication of a suspension of employment and salary must include a specific date or an objective criterion for its compliance. In a specific case of a 60-day suspension of employment and salary imposed on a worker, the letter left the determination of the compliance date of the penalty to the discretion of the company.

Remember that serious and very serious penalties require a written communication to the worker specifying the effective date of the penalty. Although it is possible to postpone the enforcement of a penalty until it is final, leaving the employee in suspense is not valid, and a specific compliance date must be specified. This lack of specificity leads to the annulment of the penalty for non-compliance with formal requirements.