Yolanda Díaz, the minister of the "turning point" in the labor market

Barcelona / MadridIt is still unknown what role Yolanda Díaz will play in the upcoming state elections. It is clear, however, that after relinquishing her leadership of the left wing of the PSOE, she will leave behind a legacy of seven years at the head of the Ministry of Labor, if the general elections are held in 2027. A union source closely involved with the government does not hesitate to describe the agenda of reforms and measures promoted by her ministry as a "turning point" in 2021.

"It has been the labor reform, the Rider Law"So many regulations despite the adversity," Díaz recalled a few days ago, when she ratified a new increase in the minimum wage (SMI) after an agreement with the major unions, CCOO and UGT, but without the employers' association. The Minister of Labor also boasted of having ensured that the ministry—always under scrutiny, as for example with the reform of unemployment benefits—now has "its own life, its own autonomy, without dependence on other ministries." With the unions, Díaz has managed to break the deadlock on 27 agreements this legislative term, to the point that employers have only supported the pact against LGBTI+ discrimination in the workplace.

Undertaking labor reform was the central promise of the Minister of Labor upon assuming office, with the aim of abandoning the PP's reforms and reducing temporary employment in order to prioritize permanent contracts. In February 2022, Díaz managed to get Congress to approve a new law—thanks to the erroneous vote of a PP deputy—which also reinstated mechanisms such as the automatic extension of collective bargaining agreements, which are automatically renewed upon expiration if no new agreement is reached. With Díaz's labor reform, the use of temporary contracts was reduced to two types for very specific reasons: contracts for production circumstances and replacement contracts. Between the last quarter of 2021 and the fourth quarter of 2025, the proportion of temporary contracts in Spain fell from 25.6% to 15.1%, according to data from the Active Population Survey (EPA) of the National Institute of Statistics (INE). In return, the figure of fixed-term intermittent workers was promoted for seasonal or intermittent jobs, allowing the worker to retain their seniority even when the company does not require them. However, this type of contract only represents 3.5% of contracts, compared to 81.4% for permanent contracts.

The thorn in Díaz's side for the moment is not having secured enough support in Congress to approve the reduction of the working week to 37.5 hours. This time, there were no errors in the lower house to save the legislation. However, Díaz plans to push through one of the most controversial aspects of the measure: strengthening timekeeping controls with new regulations, a change she intends to bring before the Council of Ministers shortly. The parliamentary process for passing the Statute for Interns is also still pending, as is the protection of salary supplements against increases in the minimum wage. Furthermore, Díaz has not yet opened the Pandora's box of reforming dismissals in Spain, despite pressure from unions and various European bodies. In addition, the Minister of Labor pledged, although it has not yet been approved, to extend leave for bereavement and palliative care, and to strengthen workplace risk prevention.

Pulse on platforms

In terms of labor relations, the second vice president will also be remembered for having put an end to the modus operandi of the delivery apps that, when the Spanish government took office, were operating with bogus self-employed workers in their fleets. This model entailed the waiver of basic labor rights, such as paid vacations and regulated rest periods, and in many cases led workers to self-exploitation and irregular practices, such as the rental of accounts by undocumented migrants.

Neither the multimillion-euro fines from the Labor Inspectorate, nor the approval of the Rider Law In 2021—with a final text that lowered the initial expectations of regulating all platform work—the measures were as effective in forcing these companies to back down as the reform of the Penal Code that threatened their managers with prison sentences for labor crimes against workers. Ultimately, Glovo and later Uber Eats agreed to hire their delivery drivers as employees.

Temporary Layoff Schemes (ERTEs): From Experiment to Structural Measure

One of the most challenging moments she has faced as Minister of Labor was the mass closure of businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. From this emergency situation emerged the Temporary Employment Regulation Files (ERTEs), a mechanism that helped preserve thousands of jobs—a fact that is now undeniable—and which has become a structural tool. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) itself described it as a "great success" and estimated that for every employee covered by an ERTE, between 1.1 and 2.2 jobs were saved. In addition to all this, there is another of the first major agreements of her term, right after she arrived at the ministry: the increase of the minimum interprofessional wage (SMI) in 2020 to €950 gross per month, paid in fourteen installments. Díaz continued the policy initiated by the PSOE and Podemos in 2018, when a new increase was approved after years of stagnation. Since then, the minimum wage has continued to rise and in 2026 it will reach €1,221 gross per month.