Leave for vocational education and training for employment

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Name of the instrument - Local language
Permiso de formación profesional para el empleo
Name of the instrument - English translation
Leave for vocational education and training for employment
Scheme ID
80
Country
Spain
Reporting year
2020
Type of instrument
Training leave
Sub-type of instrument
Paid leave - only employer and employee are involved
Type of entry
Single instrument
Short description

This measure is a workers' right included in the Workers' Statute. Employees who have worked for a company for at least one year are entitled to a 20-hour paid leave per year to undertake vocational education and training linked to the activity of the company. Eligible training includes vocational education and training for employment, which must be related to the company's activity. The eligible duration of the training leave is 0-3 working days. Companies pay the salaries of workers while they are in training. Training is organised by the company (either directly delivered or subcontracted). If applying for the schemes proposed by Fundae, companies could deduct training costs from their contribution to the social security system. The measure can be re-used by the same applicant once in each calendar year.

Level of operation
National
Name of a part of the country
Not applicable
Name of the region (for regional instruments)
Not applicable
Name of the sector (for sectoral instruments)
Not applicable
Relevance
Key instrument
Legislative Royal Decree 2/2015, of 23 October, approving the merged text of the Law of Workers' Statute (Spanish Official Bulletin 29/3/1995), and modifications (Article 23 on promotion and vocational training). This particular clause was introduced in the Workers' Statute in February 2012.
Objective(s) and target(s)
According to the Workers' Statute, and following amendments introduced in July 2012, all employees who have been working for a company for at least 1 year are entitled to a leave for vocation education and training of 20-hour length. Training must take place during normal working time. It is a workers' right that cannot be denied by employers. Unused time of training leave is transferred to the next year. Accumulation is possible up to a maximum of 5 years (i.e. 100 hours maximum). Learning contents must be linked to the company's activity, as part of the company training plan, or regulated via collective agreements. On the other hand, contents which must be compulsorily provided by the company to its employees according to other laws (for instance, related to health and safety) cannot be considered as part of this leave. Training contents can be provided face-to-face, online, or under a blended system. They can be provided directly by the company, or by a training agent subcontracted by the company.
Year of implementation
1995
Year of latest amendment
2012
Operation/management
Employees in a company for at least one year are entitled to a 20-hour paid leave per year to undertake vocational education and training for employment related to the activity of the company. Collective agreements may further detail the characteristics of the leave. In any case, the leave is a right included in the Workers' Statute, whose details are agreed between employee and employer. It can be proposed either at the initiative of the employee or the employer. Training must take place during normal working time. Unused time of training leave is transferred to the next year. Accumulation is possible up to a maximum of 5 years.
Eligible group(s)
All employees are eligible.
Group(s) with preferential treatment
No preferential treatment (this measure is all employees' right, and it cannot be denied by the employer)
Education and training eligible
Vocational education and training for employment, which must be related to the company's activity.
Source of financing and collection mechanism
When applying this right, training is financed by the employer (who can directly provide it, or subcontract it to an external provider). In practice, this right can be executed by means of other formulas offered by Fundae (State Foundation for Training in Employment), so this leave could also be partly financed by the State (via deductions in social security contributions paid by the company, following the Fundae financing).
Financing formula and allocation mechanisms
Companies pay salaries of workers while they are in training. Training is organised by the company (either directly delivered or subcontracted). If applying for the schemes proposed by Fundae, companies could deduct training costs from their contribution to the social security system
Eligible costs
If applying for any of the schemes proposed by Fundae (demand-side or supply-side schemes), companies could cover fees and other costs related to education and training
Volumes of funding
Not available
Beneficiaries/take up
948 200 in 2019
Organisation responsible for monitoring/evaluation
Public Authorities (this measure is a workers' right included in the Workers' Statute).
Most relevant webpage - in English
Not available
Most relevant webpage - local language
The Workers' Statute: https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1995-7730
Recent changes

2012. In July 2012, the amount of years that can be accumulated increased from 3 to 5 years.

Recent changes in response to COVID-19

No changes

Sources
Workers' Statute https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1995-7730
Informative leaflet by CCOO Trade Union: http://www2.fsc.ccoo.es/comunes/recursos/59996/doc274083_Permiso_retrib…
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