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Spain’s Labour Ministry Pushes Ahead With Digital Time-Tracking Rule After State Council Rebuke

The move sets up a coalition test with business poised to sue.

Overview

  • Following Monday’s stinging opinion from the Council of State, the Labour Ministry said Tuesday it will keep the core of its decree and send it to the Cabinet within weeks.
  • The plan would scrap paper timesheets and require a digital system that lets labour inspectors check records remotely to spot unpaid overtime.
  • The Council of State warned the draft oversteps what a regulation can do, downplays costs for small firms, and lacks strong data protections, though one councillor filed a dissent in support.
  • Economy backs the goal but asks for a longer transition for SMEs and a free or low-cost public app, while Labour rejects carve-outs and plans only narrow fixes on privacy and collective bargaining rules.
  • CEOE says it will go to court, and supporters cite millions of unpaid extra hours a month as the problem to fix, leaving the start date uncertain even as the government moves to approve the rule.