The collective agreement for the hospitality industry in the Community of Madrid has been published.

After almost five years of negotiations between employers and trade unions, on Saturday, June 15, 2019, the new Collective Agreement for the Hospitality Industry in the Community of Madrid was published in the Official Gazette of the Community of Madrid (hereinafter BOCM), effective from February 16, 2016, until December 31, 2020, although the economic effects are effective as of January 1, 2018.

Below, we highlight the main changes introduced by the aforementioned Agreement:

1. Salary increase

• For 2018: 3% review of the salary scales currently in force (those of 2013 from the last Collective Agreement in force).
• For 2019: 2.75% salary review of the salary scales established for 2018.
• For 2020: 2.75% salary review on the salary scales established for 2019.

As compensation for the lack of salary reviews during the period 2014–2017, a one-off, non-consolidated payment of 2% of the annual salary corresponding to the tables in force until the entry into force of this agreement, i.e. those currently in force, is established for all workers who have been employed by the company between January 1 and December 31, 2017, and who remain employed by the company on the date of publication of the Agreement.

The arrears generated and the non-consolidated payment for 2017 must be paid to workers within three months of publication in the BOCM, i.e., before September 15, 2019.

2. Temporary contract due to production circumstances

The minimum duration of 30 days is eliminated and a new maximum duration of 9 months within a 12-month reference period is established, regardless of the number of permanent contracts the company has.

3. Flexible working hours

A new regulation on irregular distribution of working hours has been established for workplaces with fewer than 50 employees, thus granting greater flexibility to these workplaces (until now, flexible working hours were only allowed in workplaces with 50 or more employees).

The new regulation allows the working day to be increased to nine and a half hours of actual work, but this cannot be done for more than four consecutive days. The company must notify the employee at least three days in advance, except in unforeseeable circumstances, and these hours will be compensated with time off. All hours exceeding eight hours per day will be added to each employee's weekly time off within a maximum period of 15 days.

4. Work calendar

The work schedule model is simplified, establishing it by functional areas and therefore no longer being nominative. It will suffice to reflect the work shift and indicate the type of weekly rest (consecutive/non-consecutive days).

5. Weekly rest

The number of workers that determines the obligation to take two consecutive days off has been raised to 20.

Likewise, weekly rest periods have been made more flexible. Regardless of the number of workers, companies that close for half a day or a full day on a fixed weekly basis may choose from the following rest period options (which cannot be combined):

• Two days of rest, not necessarily consecutive. The second day may be accumulated in periods of up to two weeks.
• One and a half consecutive days and half a day separately, which may be accumulated in periods of up to four weeks.

6. Nocturnality

The previous regulation established specific remuneration for night hours worked between midnight and 8 a.m., contradicting the provisions of the Workers' Statute, which defined night work as work performed after 10 p.m. For this reason, the new Agreement distinguishes between:

• Hours worked between 10:00 p.m. and midnight are paid at 1% above the base salary.
• Hours worked between midnight and 8:00 a.m. are paid at 25% above the base salary.

7. Disappearance of the transportation allowance

The Transport Bonus represented a significant financial burden for companies in the hospitality sector, as it was paid in full regardless of the hours worked by each employee. For this reason, as of the date of publication of the Agreement, the transport bonus is no longer in effect and has been replaced by the concept known as the “Agreement Bonus.” This bonus will vary depending on when the employee began or will begin working for the company:

• Employees who were already working for the company on the date of publication: the conditions for accrual and amount of the new bonus will be identical to those established in the Transport Bonus.
• Employees who begin their employment after the publication date: they will receive the new bonus in the same amount as the Transport Bonus (therefore not paid during holidays or in extraordinary payments), with the difference that it will be accrued in proportion to the hours worked.

In both cases, this new Plus Agreement will not be compensable or absorbable, and will be updated by the same percentage as the increase in the Agreement salaries.

8. Update professional categories

The professional categories of the remuneration levels established in the previous Agreement are being updated, notably including the job position of “delivery person.”