monjue

Hi everyone,

So my boss told me that Spain's public holidays don't apply in touristic zones and i'm not entitled to those days off.
I live in the Canaries and work in a "tourist zone"

Can anyone confirm this is true please?

Thank you very much.

monjue.

agree_to_disagree

What type of employment contract do you have?

monjue

18 hours contract Since September 2019.

agree_to_disagree

I was referring to a temporary or permanent contract. However saying 18 hours contact suggests temporary and part time. It sounds like the guy is running a business which deals with the public and he needs you when the punters are around and not when it suits you. You can exercise your rights regarding holidays but you might find you are out of a job fairly fast if you refuse to be flexible which is what your boss needs!

Two questions:

1) Does your contract refer to national holidays, your rights to time off or how the days or schedule you work in any week?

2) What type of work is it you are doing?

Ronnyone

. Most national holidays mean most businesses close. If you work in bar or restaurant then you might be expected to work but given other days to compensate. If you have had a temp contract for a year you should have a permanent as long as they kept you in employment and this will mean you have fixed number of days paid holiday. Unfortunately, as everyone know the reality is that most small businesses use various ways to limit workers rights etc. This is pretty much endemic in Spain and one of the reasons the government launched the new employment laws which are intended to guarantee minimum pay. Having said all this the truth is your contract is liable to look very complicated with about 3 or 4 pages made up of lots of fields with strange percentages and crosses in it. Unless you are Spanish speaking and have experience with work contracts it will not be easy to see holidays as they will be described as a percentage of various hours worked over various periods. If you really wish to fight your corner get an assessor to look at - if not the only option is to accept what your boss says or look for another job.

agree_to_disagree

My Spanish contracts were not complicated like you describe and they were in English. They had none of "the complicated the lots of fields with strange percentages and crosses in it".

You are referring to the actual legislation here but you won't find this in an employment contract!

Ronnyone

An official Spanish contract of employment must be done using the Ministero de trabajo y economica social document so it is registered. It will state at the top either Temporal or Indefinido.. it will in clause six state the number of days a year you have of paid holiday. It will not specify which dates. For your work contract to be official it must be registered. I doubt that a contract in English is official. I have various fields on mine for percentages of days etc but I see that that appears to link to my certificado de retenciones.

monjue

1) It does not refer to public holidays, it only stipulates specific working days and hours. The contract is permanent, indefinate.

2) Retail shop.

monjue

Yes, my contract is official, in Spanish and registered with the ministry of employment.. I also doubt a contract in English is real either.

missile

I would expect a retail shop will be closed on all national, but perhaps not on local public holidays :-)

Ronnyone

I would also imagine that a retail shop is closed on national days but local days they might be open. Nothing really you can do about it as it wont specify in the official contract- usually they tell you the national holidays are when they offer the job. As long as you get the specifided days they arent in breach of contract Im afraid

agree_to_disagree

Last contract I signed in Spain was in English, period!

They might have lodged a Spanish version of that document with whatever government office... I have no clue.

To the OP, if your employment contract is 'indefinido', then your job with this company is protected. You have statutory rights with regard to holidays, which your employer can't just cast aside!

Your employer is more than capable of trying it on, especially if there is no union present to protect employees rights.

I suggest you get some professional advise, if you feel strongly about this matter.

monjue

From my understanding a public holiday is a public holiday... if you are asked to work on a public holiday, you would imagine somewhere the law states you would be paid extra or have a day owed to you in lieu.

Remember my topic question is 'Do public holidays in Spain not apply to workers in touristic zones'?

Thanks for info so far.

Ronnyone

Unfortunately Spain doesnt seem to abide by the labour laws. This is why Sanchez has made such a big deal about getting the new law through despite the fact that nearly all businesses hate it as they see it as meaning they wont make as much profit. So as is the case- accountants find new loop holes and that then becomes the norm. Remember Spain has very high youth unemployment and has had so for decades. So now people just accept it and live with their parents etc. There is no real unemployment benefit that lasts more than a year then its zero, nada. The consequence is young Spanish are willing to do anything to have jobs and are far too scared to call their bosses out. That unfortunately is life and it is severely holding Spain back as a progressive innovative country. It's great if you are retired on a pension and have your own house but that doesn't mean everyone enjoys that lifestyle.

monjue

Understood! I've lived here long enough to know how things work unlawfully! and i'm by no means scared to call out my boss. I'm just trying to figure out if the law is on my side. How things are done in Spain vs the law are 2 different things. No boss is above the law.