Pimec estimates the impact of the transport disruptions at €9 million per day and says the lost time will have to be compensated.

BarcelonaThe Catalan employers' association Pimec, which represents small and medium-sized enterprises in Catalonia, has estimated that the disruption of the commuter rail service over the past two days, along with the temporary closure of the AP-7 highway, resulting from the train accident in Gelida, has generated a daily economic impact of €8.9 million on Catalan businesses, representing a significant portion of the gross domestic product (GDP). In a statement released this Friday, the association explained that this calculation is based on the labor costs incurred by affected workers who had to use alternative means of transport, excluding those who could work remotely and assuming an average delay of 60 minutes per person. Regarding the AP-7 closure, the association estimated the costs based on the additional time spent by workers commuting via alternative routes. Specifically, it places the minimum daily cost in terms of labor costs at €5.9 million.

"Beyond the direct impact on citizens, this situation entails very significant costs for the economy and the business sector, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, which have less capacity to adapt to this type of incident," argued the Catalan employers' association, chaired by Antoni Cañete.

Sustained investment deficit

The origin of these disruptions, says Pimec, lies in the sustained investment deficits over the years, which have weakened the capacity of the railway infrastructure to provide the planned service. This, the employers' association points out, has been acknowledged by sources within the Catalan government and the Spanish government. That is why Pimec considers it unacceptable that the consequences of this lack of investment should now fall on the companies. Given this exceptional situation, the organization has recommended that companies consider absences due to the inability to reach the workplace as duly justified when this circumstance is proven, without this entailing disciplinary or employment consequences for the affected individuals. The hours not worked

However, the employers' association also argues that these absences do not qualify as paid leave, given that the authorities have urged employees to seek alternative means of transportation and have not issued any general travel restrictions. "Consequently, the hours not worked will have to be made up or rescheduled through an agreement between the company and the workers," they maintain.