The decision of the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) on the merits in Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT) v. Spain, Complaint No. 207/2022, became public on 29 July 2024.
In its complaint, UGT alleged the situation in Spain constitutes a violation of Article 24 (the right to protection in cases of termination of employment) of the Revised European Social Charter (“the Charter”) on the grounds that the mechanism for compensation in cases of termination of employment without a valid reason provided for in national law and as interpreted in domestic case law, does not allow victims of dismissals without a valid reason to obtain a compensation which would be adequate to cover the damage suffered and have a dissuasive effect for employers. In particular, the worker is only entitled to compensation automatically by law that sets a maximum ceiling and does not take into account the actual damage suffered.
In its decision on the merits, the ECSR concluded:
by 13 votes against 1 that there is a violation of Article 24.b of the Charter.