Advance notice is required to terminate a labor contract
Companies should be aware that an advance notice is requiered to dismiss an employee. Article 53 of the Spanish Workers Law requires a minimum of 15 days’ prior notice for a company to dismiss a worker.
Related article:Spanish labor law: severance pay regime
It is important that the notice of dismissal should be in writing.
When is it not necessary to give prior notice?
If the employer dismisses a worker for disciplinary reasons (e.g. tradiness, unjustified absence, crime offence etc.) then the worker can be dismissed without prior notice.
The company can also dismiss an employee within the trial period without any advance notice.
What are the consequences of not giving advanve notice?
If the employer fails to meet the duty to give advance notice, then additional compensation equivalent to the wages of the number of days advance notice is not given. For example, if the company simply gives 5 days’ advance notice to dismiss the employee, then an additional 10 days’ compensation should be paid.
Note: 15 days’ advance notice is the minimum required by law. However, it is important to note that some industries’ collective agreements (convenio) may increase this minimum.
