Congress knocks down Sumar's plan supported by PSOE to include unions on boards of directors

Junts and PNV join PP and Vox to overthrow the proposal sponsored by Yolanda Díaz

MADRID, 23 Abr. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Congressional Labor Commission has rejected a non-legal proposal by Sumar, supported by the PSOE, to include workers, their representatives and union organizations in the boards of directors of companies and business groups.

And Junts and the PNV, regular partners of the coalition government, have joined the PP and Vox to reject this proposal sponsored by Vice President Yolanda Díaz, adding 19 votes compared to the 17 supports of PSOE, Sumar, ERC and Bildu and the abstention of the Canarian Coalition, which holds the vote of the Mixed Group in the Commission.

Although the rejected proposal was not legislative in nature, the inclusion of unions in the upper echelons of the company is a recurring request from the leader of Sumar and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, and in fact the 2024 regulatory plan includes the provision to draft a law with this objective.

The spokesperson for Junts in the Commission, Josep María Cervera, has precisely recalled this point and has indicated that, in his opinion, the PNL's objective was to seek "parliamentary endorsement" for an issue "that is being worked on."

"We hope, as a parliamentary group, to have the opportunity to be able to discuss it with the Government in parallel with the social dialogue that we understand should take place," he said in the debate.

A debate that has begun with the defense of the initiative by Sumar's Labor spokesperson in Congress, Verónica Martínez, who has emphasized that union organizations are "essential" and a "fundamental part" for the strategic decisions of the companies, so their presence on the boards would mean a "competitive advantage" for Spain.

The deputy spokesperson for the confederal group and president of the commission, Aina Vidal, has also spoken, taking advantage of a press conference in the Lower House to defend the initiative, considering that "no one better than the workers knows the day-to-day life of your own company".

Although the Socialist Group finally voted in favor of the initiative, the PSOE deputy for Cantabria, Noelia Cobo, has defended that current legislation already includes the possibility for unions to participate in the decisions that the company may adopt.

Specifically, he recalled that the Workers' Statute already provides for the participation of workers in the company through representative bodies, such as personnel delegates and company committees. Likewise, he considers that the current legislation does not exhaust the possibilities of participation of union organizations.

For his part, Juan José Aizcorbe, from Vox, considers it positive that union representatives participate in the company's strategic solutions, but he wanted to include an amendment to eliminate subsidies to these organizations and also to employers.

A suggestion that Sumar has rejected and has caused the rejection of Vox. For his part, the PP deputy, Rafael Benigno Belmonte, has considered that the proposal has a "negative prejudice" against business activity and believes that what Sumar really wants with his proposal is to "intervene" in companies.