Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2006, published 96th ILC session (2007)

Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102) - Spain (Ratification: 1988)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in its report on the Convention, as well as in its report on the European Code of Social Security (ECSS).

1. Part VI (Employment injury benefit). Article 36 of the Convention. With reference to its previous conclusions, the Committee recalls that the concept of permanent incapacity is set out in section 137 of the General Social Security Act (LGSS). Section 137, subsection 3, provides that permanent partial incapacity arises when there is a decrease of at least 33 per cent in the worker’s normal capacity for work in his usual occupation, without preventing the worker from discharging fundamental activities. In such a case, workers are entitled to a benefit in cash consisting of a lump sum that is fully compatible with their maintenance in the job that they were discharging, in view of the fact that they retain sufficient capacity to perform the fundamental activities of the occupation that they carried on. In view of the fact that the employer is obliged to maintain the worker in his job, even though his performance is below the standard, the Government considers its legislation to be in line with Article 36(3)(a) of the Convention, which permits the conversion of a pension into a lump sum where the degree of incapacity is slight.

Taking into account that section 8 of Act No. 24/1997 of 15 July 1997 replaced the definitions of the various categories of invalidity, by specifying that qualification for the various degrees of permanent incapacity shall be determined by regulations on the basis of the percentage of the reduction of capacity for work, the Committee requested the Government to indicate the degrees of partial incapacity prescribed by the new regulations and the provisions obliging employers to maintain an incapacitated employee in her or his previous job or another job where the degree of the employee’s incapacity for work in his usual occupation is not slight. In its 2006 report on the application of the ECSS, the Government indicates the types of incapacity due to industrial accidents or occupational illness that may entitle people to benefits. The Committee notes this information. It would like the Government to be requested to provide examples of cases in which a worker: (a) is impaired by not less that 33 per cent while being able to carry out his/her basic tasks; and (b) is unable to carry out some or all of his/her basic tasks while being able to engage in a different profession.

2. Part XI (Calculation of benefits). The Committee noted in its previous conclusions that, in the Spanish social security system, the maximum and minimum limits are prescribed for the rate of the benefits as well as for the earnings taken into account for the calculation of benefits. Thus, it requested the Government to use in its next report the methodology of Article 65 of the Convention when assessing the level of the benefits in the schemes prescribing maximum limits for the rate of the benefit or the earnings taken into account for its calculation, and the methodology of Article 66 in assessing the level of the minimum amounts of different types of pensions and benefits guaranteed by the legislation. The Government indicated in its 2006 report on the application of the  ECSS that, according to Act No. 30/2005 (27 December 2005) of the General Budget for 2006 (BOE of 30 December 2005), the maximum threshold for social security pensions amounts to 31,255.56 euros in 2006 as an annual calculation. The Committee notes with interest that, accordingly, the Government based all pension calculations on the methodology of Article 65 of the Convention. As regards to short-term benefits, the Committee notes the maximum limit prescribed for the earnings taken into account for the calculation of sickness and temporary incapacity benefit, unemployment benefit and maternity benefit. Accordingly, the Government based its benefit calculations, apart from the calculation of benefit under Part IV of the Convention, also on the methodology of Article 65. In this respect, it would like the Government to be requested to use in its next report the methodology of Article 65 also for the calculation of the unemployment benefit under Part IV of the Code.