Pimec opens the door to a third term for Cañete "in exceptional cases."

Barcelona"We have been analyzing the situations regarding the mandates of the most representative agents, we have generated an internal debate, and unanimously it has been proposed to maintain the two-term limit, adding the possibility of a third term under exceptional conditions." This is how the president of Pimec, Antoni Cañete, announced a key point of the modification of the statutes voted on at the general meeting this Tuesday, which until now limited the number of terms for a single president to two. As Cañete pointed out, this "2+1" concept would be used "only in circumstances where a third term must be considered."

As an example, the president of the employers' association recalled the 2020 elections, in which Pere Barrios also stood as the candidate. a candidate from the pro-independence list Country Tools and he competed at the polls with Cañete for the presidency of the employers' association. "During the previous term, an electoral process was carried out, and the employers' association tried to exploit it with political issues; such a case would be an exceptional situation," Cañete explained. To be eligible for a third term, the president would have to announce his intention to run again during the last year, and it would have to be approved by two-thirds of the assembly, a qualified majority.

However, Cañete, who has just begun his second term as president of Pimec, has lowered expectations: "When the last year arrives, the president must say so, and then it will depend on his personal and professional situation; at the moment I don't foresee it, but we'll see," he said. "I'm not in favor of not setting term limits; change is always good for organizations," he asserted.

Lately, removing term limits has become fashionable among employers' associations. Just a year ago, at the 2024 general assembly, the Foment del Treball employers' association announced that it was removing the term limit from the statutes, as Antonio Garamendi had previously done at the CEOE. As for the unions, the limits remain in place for the time being, with the majority remaining at three terms, and, as Cañete explained, this 2+1 formula is the one used by the CCOO.

Social dialogue and reduced working hours

One of Pimec's main current crusades is its entry into the Economic and Social Council (CES) and the distribution of seats on the Conventions Commission (CCNCC), which the CEOE has taken to court. In this regard, Cañete recalled that "a BOE (Official State Gazette) states that Pimec is entitled to participate" and hopes that its entry into the CES will become definitively effective with the renewal of the presidency, which should be "soon."

In the case of the CCNCC, Cañete said that he finds it "quite surprising that in this commission, which has six seats, five are from the CEOE," and does not believe that Garamendi's complaint will go any further. "What I find surprising is that a game is played with the foot while winning, but when losing, the ball is grabbed with the hand," he concluded.

Regarding the reduction of the working day to 37.5 hours, the president of Pimec has stated that they are "very afraid" of the measure's parliamentary process. "A horse goes in and a camel can come out," he said. However, he welcomed the fact that the Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, expressed this Tuesday that there is room for negotiation. "The music sounds good, but we are interested in knowing the lyrics," Cañete warned.

The SME employers' association has assured that it is "always willing to talk" about the measure to make it "viable," and Cañete has announced that he plans to meet with "all" political parties. This Wednesday he will meet with the PSOE in Madrid and on May 27 with Sumar. For now, meetings with ERC and the PNV are also on the agenda.

The figures

Regarding the employers' association's accounts, Pimec closed 2024 with a profit of €2.1 million, up from €936,000 last year. This represents a 126% increase, an "extraordinary" percentage due to the impact of the sale of some warehouses in Romania. Regarding turnover, it earned more than €26 million, 14% more than the €23.8 million in 2023. Looking ahead to 2025, the association forecasts a profit of €24.8 million.