First victory in court for researchers María Zambrano in Catalonia: "The university must pay me 23,000 euros"

BarcelonaAfter more than two years of conflict, the social chamber of the Court of First Instance of Girona has ruled in favor of the 18 researchers María Zambrano in its dispute with the University of Girona. According to the now final ruling, it was unjustified for the University of Girona to use the money from this now-cancelled state talent recruitment program, which was intended for scientists' salaries, to pay the employer's social security contributions. The court now requires the university to return the amounts withheld improperly.

This ruling This follows four previous Supreme Court rulings, which had already established in the case of other state universities in the same situation that they could not deduct employer contributions from the salaries of contracted research staff. The Supreme Court considers that the employer's contribution is the responsibility of the hiring entity, not the employee. The new ruling reaffirms the existing jurisprudence and could determine the outcome of pending litigation, such as that involving the University of Barcelona (UB) and the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC). Others, like the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), have opted to avoid litigation and have reached out-of-court settlements with the affected scientists. "We don't yet know the exact amounts because the ruling doesn't include interest for late payment," explains ecologist Carla Olmo, formerly María Zambrano Research Fellow at the University of Girona (UdG). "I estimate that the university will have to pay me around 23,000 euros," she adds. Similar amounts will have to be paid by the University of Girona to the other María Zambrano researchers.

Regarding the rest of the Catalan university system, according to information obtained by ARA, the UPC is awaiting a ruling after a group of researchers won a lawsuit and the university appealed to the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC). As for the UB, in the words of some of the plaintiffs—who prefer to remain anonymous because they still collaborate with UB research groups and fear reprisals—"they are using every possible delaying tactic to postpone going to trial." Some of the affected parties have received a notification to appear in court next April.

Failed program

The María Zambrano talent recruitment program was implemented in 2021 by then-Minister Manuel Castells with the aim of "promoting mobility, retraining, and attracting talent among teaching and research staff." Its objective was to strengthen the university research system and it had a budget of €318 million from European Union sources. The program offered a gross monthly salary of €4,000 and was set to expire in 2025. In total, 1,218 researchers came to Spain from abroad, both national and international, and were distributed among Spanish universities. The Catalan system attracted the largest number of these scientists (nearly 300), the vast majority between 40 and 50 years old with outstanding research track records. However, the wording of the call for applications was ambiguous and left many questions unanswered, such as the future of the researchers once the María Zambrano contract, which lasted two or three years, ended. The promised monthly stipend of €4,000 for scientists was also problematic, as the wording did not specify that it had to be entirely dedicated to their salaries. In fact, scientists in this talent return program were receiving over €1,000 less per month than they had been promised. This meant that researchers based in Catalonia, as reported by ARA, found themselves receiving little more than half of what the call for proposals stipulated, and their future, after this period, was completely uncertain. Catalan universities took refuge in what the official grant resolution published in the BOE (Official State Gazette) stated, while the Ministry of Science passed the buck to the universities, and the Catalan Ministry of Research and Universities considered the matter to be under the jurisdiction of the Spanish government. This left the affected researchers in limbo, leading many to leave and condemning many others who chose to stay to precarious employment.

Spills into precarity

This is the case of Olmo, who, after the University of Girona ran out of options for a new contract following the end of the María Zambrano program, had to move to the University of Valencia. "My contract ends again in June. I've been a researcher for 15 years, and my situation is becoming increasingly precarious," she explains to ARA. A similar case is that of anthropologist Dídac Santos, who, after building his career abroad, wanted to return "home" and went to the Autonomous University of Barcelona. "The UAB already paid us; they didn't want to go to court," he recounts. However, "the amount they paid varied greatly depending on whether you had filed a lawsuit beforehand or not. Some people received everything they were owed, around 20,000 euros, and others only 500 because they hadn't sued," clarifies this researcher, who is now at the Complutense University of Madrid.

In fact, last autumn, Santos represented the Zambrano family at a meeting with the Minister of Universities and Research, Núria Montserrat, where she promised them that the 2026 calls for applications for the Beatriz de Pinós postdoctoral grants and the Serra Húnter positions would be reviewed so that, in her words, they would have an advantage. However, they lament that there has been no modification to the call for applications. "The Minister doesn't care about us at all," says a hurt Santos. "Most of us have the profile of a tenured professor or even a full professor, and at best they offer us the chance to apply for lecturer positions, which are the lowest-ranking positions in the career ladder, held by those who have just earned their doctorates," he complains.

For her part, Minister Montserrat stated in declarations to ARA that "the department committed to reviewing the terms of the calls for applications for the Beatriz de Pinós and Serra Húnter programs to to assess whether the researchers in the María Zambrano program were eligible according to the established requirements." In this regard, they assert that the María Zambrano researchers meet the requirements to apply to the Serra Húnter program, as they hold doctoral degrees and have a proven postdoctoral track record with international experience—one of the program's preferred merits—and can apply without any problem, since it is the one that "best suits their profile." For the Zambrano researchers, however, "the regional minister argues that universities have autonomy and, therefore, can do nothing." "Then what is the purpose of a Ministry of Universities?" they question. And they admit that their case was a dead end: "The Spanish government had no interest in resolving our situation, and the Generalitat and the regional ministry haven't taken a stand because they consider it outside their jurisdiction." Unemployed and living on social assistance

There are other, more dramatic cases, such as that of Marina (a pseudonym to protect her identity). She is 60 years old, and after a brilliant career in the social sciences, primarily in France, she wanted to return to her native Girona. In her case, she has received no compensation whatsoever from the UAB (Autonomous University of Barcelona). She is unemployed, despite holding the R3 accreditation granted by the Ministry of Science, the highest category that certifies her as a researcher. She is surviving on social assistance for those over 52, while preparing for competitive examinations in France. "I am completely destitute. My international colleagues are baffled as to how, with my CV and the high-impact articles I have published in recent years, I could find myself in this situation," she laments.