Essential Worker Rights and Protections in the Workplace

Labor Rights and Duties

Basic Rights

• Work and Free Choice of Profession

  Workers are free to choose their profession or trade and cannot be forced to work against their will.

• Free Association

  Employees have the right to join any union they choose.

• Collective Bargaining

  Workers can establish working conditions through negotiations between their representatives and the employer or their representative.

• Right to Collective Action

  Workers have the right to defend their interests through collective labor relations, with striking being a final measure.

• Right to Strike

  A strike is a collective measure of pressure by workers, involving the cessation of work, to compel the employer to accept their conditions.

• Right to Assemble

  Employees have the right to assemble.

• Participation in the Enterprise

  Workers are entitled to participate in company decisions through their representatives.

• Effective Occupation

  The employer must provide the worker with a job, roles, tasks, and the necessary means to perform them.

Rights in the Employment Relationship

• Promotion and Training

  Workers are entitled to career advancement within the company, including leave for exams and preferential consideration for shift changes when pursuing professional or academic qualifications.

• Equal Treatment and Non-Discrimination

  Workers have the right to equal treatment and not to be discriminated against, directly or indirectly, within the Spanish State.

• Physical Integrity, Health, and Safety

  The employer must ensure the health and physical integrity of workers by implementing health and safety measures and providing necessary protective equipment.

• Respect for Privacy and Dignity

  The employer must respect the dignity and privacy of workers, who must not be subjected to humiliating or degrading treatment.

• Rest and Timely Remuneration

  Workers are entitled to annual, weekly, and daily rest periods. They are also entitled to receive their agreed or legally established remuneration on specified dates.

• Individual Legal Action

  Workers have the right to pursue individual legal action in the employment tribunal if the employer fails to comply with the employment contract.

• Other Contractual Rights

  Workers also possess rights stipulated in their employment contract, even if not explicitly detailed in laws or collective agreements.