Big employer leadership and the main trade unions that represent the majority of workers, including CCOO and UGT, reached agreement on how wages should rise in the coming years. After weeks of careful talks and an earlier failed attempt to seal a deal, the social partners coalition settled their disagreements and agreed to raise salaries by at least ten percent over three years.
A precisely worded accord that El Periódico de Catalunya, part of the Prensa Ibérica group, has access to. The agreement may not uniformly affect every worker and must be reflected in negotiations of periodically renewed deals. On the business and union sides, this document outlines the core terms that guide those renewals. Here are the main elements of the agreement reached by the social partners.
CEOE confirms commitment to increase wages by at least 10% by 2025
1. What exactly was agreed?
The employers and unions sealed a so-called framework agreement for Employment and Collective Bargaining (AENC). It functions as a blueprint or “agreement of agreements” that is periodically renewed by the leading employers’ association and the most representative unions at the national level. The document lays out elements that should be carried into the negotiations for sectoral agreements as they are renewed. While AENC often includes various salary guidance, it is the salary figures that matter most for workers, along with workplace security and related matters.
In the preliminary agreement, which must be signed by the top employers’ organizations and the major unions, the parties commit to lifting wages by at least 10% by 2025. This plan translates into a 4% increase for 2023 and 3% for 2024 and 2025. An additional 1% increase, not retroactive, may be added depending on how the CPI develops. In practice, if the CPI for this year ends above 4%, companies would raise payrolls by an extra point starting January 1, 2024. Therefore, by 2024 the total increase could reach 4% rather than 3%, with the same mechanism applying in the following two years. (Cited interpretation: from the negotiated framework.)
2. Will all salaries rise automatically?
No. The AENC serves as a strategic guide for sectoral negotiations, and its implementation depends on the renewal of each agreement. In other words, starting today, companies will not automatically boost all salaries by 4%. Workers cannot anticipate a blanket 4% rise in any factory or plant. Adjustments will occur as agreements are renewed and contract-specific provisions are updated.
The salary reviews are tied to the renewal cycles of collective agreements. These agreements establish the terms applicable across sectors, regions, and provinces, and each worker’s pay is updated when its contractually determined. The AENC does not compel immediate changes in every contract. Instead, it sets a reference framework for future updates.
3. Is the framework legally binding?
No. The AENC is not a binding regulation; it is a guiding instrument. Historically, signatories have sometimes agreed to updates that exceed or fall short of what the framework specifies. In other words, not all contracts must be renewed for three years with a cumulative 10% increase, and even when signatories represent labor and unions, they often choose to follow negotiated increments that differ from the baseline. The parties still expect adherence to the agreed ranges where applicable.
4. Does it apply to all sectors?
Yes and no. The AENC acts as a payroll roadmap that binds signatories and is most influential where the most representative social partners hold sway. CEOE, CCOO, and UGT are major mediating bodies that typically sign deals affecting many industries. Still, other representative bodies in certain sectors or regions can negotiate different terms. In some cases, smaller associations or regional unions are not signatories to the AENC and may set distinct salary levels in their contracts. For example, some regional groupings in Catalonia or the Basque country can negotiate independently, resulting in variations in the applied increases.
In practice, the Catalan federation of small and medium enterprises and other regional players may not be bound by the central agreement, while unions like LAB in Euskadi wield significant influence in specific sectors without being tied to the overall framework.
5. What happens to existing agreements?
The AENC serves as a benchmark for renewing future deals. Agreements already signed and not yet expired are not automatically altered by the framework. Once their terms end, the parties can consider incorporating the ten percent increase across three years. However, the framework does not compel existing signatories to reopen or revise already valid collective agreements. It is designed to guide negotiations for contracts that are up for renewal or nearing expiration, serving as a reference point for updates.