Special commissions provided for in Spanish national collective bargaining agreements related to protocols for combating discrimination against members of the LGTBI+ community: an initial assessment following the entry into force of Law 4/2023

Abstract

The expiry of the deadlines set by Law 4/2023 of 28 February and Royal Decree 1026/2024 of 8 October for collective bargaining agreements to fulfil their requirements has brought about a genuine transformation in the way in which Spanish collective agreements recognise the rights of members of the LGBTI+ community. In this regard, a clear evolution can be observed from 2024 to 2025 and 2026, as whilst in the former year clauses on action protocols were in the minority, in the latter two years the trend has changed completely and the majority of texts now incorporate the subject matter analysed here. Furthermore, almost all of them provide for the establishment of specific committees tasked with investigating and proposing measures to combat acts of discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. That said, there is a lack of preventive rather than reactive measures and a certain degree of creativity on the part of the social partners, as many of the agreements studied merely transcribe the wording of external regulations verbatim; however, it is worth noting that there is an increasing number of provisions setting out innovative content, which constitute examples of good practice to be followed in the future.