The agreement on the draft Spanish budget, reached by prime minister Pedro Sanchez and his main ally Pablo Iglesias, was struck almost on the quiet, in the early hours of the morning of 11 October. The discrete manner in which the deal was reached contrasts strongly with the scope of the measures announced, including a historic minimum wage increase, alignment of paternity leave with the 16 weeks of maternity leave by 2021, bolstering the framework for part-time work, and a push to restore collective bargaining.
A 22.3% rise in the minimum wage, better known in Spain as the SMI (Salario Mínimo Interprofesional), is the largest seen since 1975. The increase is the most symbolic measure of the Spanish budget and the aspect that has been most strongly criticised by employers in the country. Spain’s institute for economic studies (IEE) has denounced a rise in the cost of labour: “The total cost of a workers on the SMI, social security included, would increase from €13,500 this year to €16,510 in 2019, with
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