Early retirement at Santander: the agreement is approaching, who will be able to join and what will happen now

The early retirement agreement at Banco Santander is in a very advanced stage of negotiation, with the latest proposal from the entity presented on July 13 and a new meeting scheduled for this Friday, July 17, in which it could be practically finalized. The bank has improved the conditions to approach the union demands, and CCOO is analyzing the text in detail before setting its final position. The schedule managed by the parties points to an agreement around July 15 and an effective implementation of the plan starting in September, with a planned duration of three years. Once there is consensus between the company and union representatives, the agreement will be formalized as a collective agreement, subject to the usual registration procedures before the labor authority.

Current status of the negotiation

According to the newspaper Demócrata, Santander has strengthened its offer by incorporating a “good part” of CCOO's demands, including assuming the special Social Security agreement until 63 years and six months and structuring the process through a collective agreement with a monitoring commission, instead of individual negotiations, which provides more legal certainty and uniform treatment for the workforce (Demócrata article).

CCOO itself values these advances “positively,” but has made it clear that it still needs to study the proposal in detail before confirming its support. The fourth meeting of the table was held on July 13 and, due to the absence of a definitive consensus, a new meeting has been set for Friday, July 17, with the intention of finalizing the agreement.

The plan does not set a fixed number of exits: it is configured as a voluntary adhesion scheme by both parties (the company reserves veto rights and workers are not obliged to join). The adjustment will affect both the branch network in Spain and central services, with an estimated adhesion period of three years and a planned launch in September (conditions analysis, start of negotiation).

Position of the company and unions

In the intermediate phase of the negotiation, unions pressured to improve severance payments and income percentages, describing the initial offer as “totally insufficient” and also demanding a generational replacement clause to avoid work overload on the remaining staff (union pressure in Demócrata). These criticisms explain the strengthening of the proposal now under discussion.

In the new proposal, reported both in Demócrata and other media, incomes of around 74% of gross salary are maintained for certain age groups and it is offered to reach approximately 95% of the future pension, guaranteeing the payment of the allowance and the special agreement until 63.5 years (El Correo information, Heraldo). Santander maintains that the process is totally voluntary and that the current offer is the limit of economically feasible improvement (Cinco Días, 20minutos, Europa Press, El Economista, Santander blog).

Next steps for approval

The next milestones, if there is no change at the table, are:

• Closing meeting this Friday, July 17, to try to reach the final text of the collective agreement (Demócrata).
• Internal decision by the unions, especially CCOO, after analyzing the document; in similar processes, this phase may include consultations with the workforce.
• Signing of the company–workers' representation agreement, likely around July 15, if the timelines advanced by the negotiators themselves are maintained (Demócrata, Demócrata).
• Registration and publication as a collective agreement before the labor authority, similarly to other sectoral agreements published in the BOE according to article 90 of the Workers' Statute and Royal Decree 713/2010 (modification of the XXV banking agreement).
• Start of adhesions from September, with a horizon of up to three years for orderly exits.

General framework and other references

The use of early retirements and agreed exits is consolidating in banking and other sectors as an adjustment tool in restructuring and digitalization processes, as various reports on Santander, Telefónica, Iberia, Ericsson, Ence, Teka, or other collective agreements published in the BOE and regional official journals show (banking and AI, Iberia, Ericsson, Teka, Ence, Saint-Gobain PAM agreement, UTE Ilunion–Ibermática agreement, DIA agreement, Bimbo agreement, among others).

In parallel, collective bargaining and pension or early retirement plans are also moving in other sectors and companies (Paradores, Kutxabank, textile trade, road transport, etc.), which outlines a context of intense social dialogue around employment, wages, and retirement (Kutxabank, Paradores, textile trade, professional drivers).

The research documentation also includes other current national and international news and about labor or educational conflicts (Telefónica, minimum wage, banking protests, educational strikes, Renfe, postal service, etc.) that do not directly affect the Santander table but illustrate the breadth of social and regulatory debate on labor and pensions (opening of negotiation at Santander, minimum wage meeting, minimum wage agreement, banking protests, BOE summary, postal service agreement, bank branch reduction, and other references from Demócrata and international sources).

In Spanish labor legislation, the negotiation of collective agreements and accords is structured through the representation of workers (legal representation within the company) and trade union organizations. The Workers' Statute recognizes collective bargaining as a fundamental right of workers and places collective agreements as a central source of regulation of working conditions, alongside law and individual contracts, according to the consolidated text approved by Royal Legislative Decree 2/2015 (Workers' Statute). The Organic Law on Trade Union Freedom also shapes union activity and the so-called “negotiation canon” as part of the protected content of trade union freedom, as explained in Organic Law 11/1985, on Trade Union Freedom. Based on this, it can be summarized that the functions and competencies of union representatives in collective bargaining are: representing collective interests, negotiating the content of agreements, receiving relevant information, and respecting legal and normative hierarchy limits.

1. Basic normative framework

The Workers' Statute, in its current version published in the BOE, establishes that the rights and obligations of the labor relationship are regulated, among others, by collective agreements, placing them as a source immediately following legal and regulatory provisions. The same text recognizes collective bargaining as a fundamental right of workers, along with free union membership, strike, adoption of collective conflict measures, assembly, and information, consultation, and participation in the company.

The Organic Law on Trade Union Freedom develops the content of the right to union membership and defines union activity as an essential facet of that right. In the preamble, it states that it incorporates “the most progressive international doctrine on content, independence, and freedom of union action,” and explains that article 11 introduces, with the rank of organic law, the so-called “negotiation canon,” expressly connected to Title III of the Workers' Statute relating to collective bargaining, according to LO 11/1985.

2. Legitimate subjects and representation

Although the full legal text is not transcribed in the sources, from the available fragments it is deduced that the legislator distinguishes between:

• Legal representation of workers, which is recognized a central role in information and consultation, according to the amendment of article 64 of the Statute introduced by Law 12/2021, which expands their right to be informed even about algorithms and artificial intelligence systems affecting working conditions, access, and job retention.
• Trade union organizations, whose right to union activity and to formulate their action program is established in LO 11/1985, which naturally includes the negotiation of collective agreements and accords as an instrument to defend collective interests.

The conjunction of the Statute and Organic Law thus places legal representation within the company and representative unions as subjects called to integrate negotiating commissions and channel the collective will of workers in the company and sector.

3. Functions and powers in the negotiation of agreements and accords

On this legal basis, the typical functions and competencies of union representatives and legal representation in collective bargaining can be grouped into several blocks, with the limits indicated in the following section:

• Negotiation initiative and proposal formulation: representatives are those who articulate collective demands and formulate proposals for regulation of salaries, working hours, professional classification, leaves, training, etc., taking advantage that the Statute itself repeatedly refers to collective bargaining to specify key aspects (for example, salary structure or professional classification criteria, as seen in the fragments of the consolidated text published in the BOE).
• Reception of information and consultation: the reform operated by Law 12/2021 makes explicit that the works council (as legal representation) has the right to be informed of “parameters, rules, and instructions” of algorithms that influence working conditions and employment. This strengthening of the right to information increases their real negotiation capacity, especially in digitalized and platform environments.
• Defense of the collectivity during and after signing: the Organic Law on Trade Union Freedom emphasizes the independence and freedom of union action, which translates into the capacity to defend the negotiated agreement, supervise its compliance, and, if necessary, activate collective conflict measures or judicial actions when the agreement is violated or collective rights are harmed.
• Participation in the configuration of the system of sources: the Statute indicates that workers cannot validly dispose of rights recognized by mandatory legal provisions nor those declared unavailable by collective agreement. This implies that, at the negotiating table, union representatives contribute to setting the content of those conventional rights that later cannot be individually “waived.”

4. Legal and normative hierarchy limits

Union representatives, although enjoying broad freedom of action recognized by LO 11/1985, are subject to clear limits, deduced from fragments of the Workers' Statute:

• Respect for normative hierarchy: the Statute establishes that legal and regulatory provisions apply subject to the principle of normative hierarchy and that the individual contract cannot set less favorable conditions than laws and agreements. By analogy, the agreement cannot contravene imperative rules of higher rank.
• Unavailability of necessary rights: the Statute itself states that workers “cannot validly dispose” of rights recognized by mandatory legal provisions nor those declared unavailable by collective agreement. Therefore, union representatives cannot validly negotiate a reduction of these minimum standards.
• Framework of the 2021 labor reform: Royal Decree-law 32/2021 emphasizes in its preamble the need to strengthen sectoral collective bargaining and correct distortions in the concurrence of agreements, implying that the negotiating action of union representatives today is inserted in a framework that seeks to avoid the use of company agreements as mere instruments of regressive “opt-out.”

Overall, Spanish legislation configures union representatives and legal representation of workers as central subjects of collective bargaining, endowed with broad powers of proposal, information, and collective defense, but obliged to respect legal minimums, the hierarchy of sources, and the non-waivable rights of workers.

Early retirement in Spanish banking is not regulated by a specific “early retirement law,” but by a framework of labor and Social Security regulations (especially collective dismissal, early retirement, and partial retirement), plus what is agreed in sector collective agreements and company agreements. In practice, banks structure early retirements as exit plans (voluntary or objective) linked to collective dismissal procedures (ERE) or incentivized departures, with salary supplements and coverage of contributions until retirement age. Below is a summary of the main applicable regulatory pieces.

1. General labor legislation

The basic framework is the Workers' Statute, consolidated text approved by Royal Legislative Decree 2/2015 (Workers' Statute). Although it does not mention “early retirement,” it regulates:

• Collective dismissal and ERE (art. 51 and related): usual legal basis for massive early retirement plans, along with incentivized voluntary departures.
• Part-time contracts and partial/relief retirement (art. 12.6–8, text updated in 2024): key when early retirement is structured as partial retirement with relief contract, allowing pension compatibility and work hour reduction.
• Substantial modification of conditions and mobility (art. 41, 40), often used as a negotiation context for voluntary exits.

The 2012 labor reform, embodied in Law 3/2012 and Royal Decree-law 3/2012, intensely reordered the collective dismissal regime, reinforced by the ERE Regulation below.

2. ERE, social support plans, and workers over 50/55 years

Bank early retirement plans are usually channeled within an ERE with a social support plan. Key regulations are:

• Royal Decree 1483/2012, of October 29, approving the Regulation of collective dismissal procedures and suspension of contracts and reduction of working hours (ERE Regulation). It requires:
  • Consultation period with worker representation.
  • Explanatory report and economic documentation.
  • External relocation plan and social support measures (training, relocation, measures for older workers, etc.).
• Royal Decree 1484/2012, on economic contributions from companies with profits that carry out collective dismissals affecting workers aged 50 or over (RD 1484/2012). It obliges certain companies to contribute to the cost of benefits and contributions, very relevant in banking EREs with high percentages of workers over 50–55 years.
• Royal Decree-law 5/2013, of March 15, on measures to promote the continuation of working life of older workers and active aging, which tightened conditions for early and partial retirement and regulated special agreements, although part of its content has been annulled by Constitutional Court Ruling 61/2018 (STC 61/2018).
• Directive 98/59/EC on collective redundancies (Directive 98/59/EC), which inspires the Spanish framework and strengthens information and consultation obligations.

3. Social Security: early retirement, partial retirement, and special agreements

From the Social Security perspective, early retirement relies on two figures:

• Early retirement: regulated in the General Social Security Law (consolidated text approved by Royal Legislative Decree 8/2015) and its developments, with age, contribution years, and reduction coefficients requirements. Many banking early retirement plans calculate supplements so that the sum of unemployment benefits, aids, and subsequent early pension approximates the previous salary.
• Special agreement with Social Security: applicable when the entity commits to assume or finance the worker's contributions until ordinary or early retirement age, according to the LGSS and rules such as orders on special agreements and resolutions from the General Treasury (for example, the Resolution of July 2, 1986, on contributions during aids equivalent to early retirement, 1986 resolution).

In banking early retirement agreements, it is common that the bank:

• Pays a gross monthly income (percentage of salary) until an agreed age.
• Finances a special agreement with Social Security to maintain the contribution base.

4. Banking sector regulations and company agreements

The details of early retirements are mainly set in sector and company collective bargaining:

• Banking sector collective agreement: the XXV Banking Sector Agreement, published by Resolution of December 20, 2024 (XXV Banking Agreement), and the previous XXIV (XXIV Banking Agreement), establish the framework for professional classification, working hours, salaries, and sometimes references to supplementary social welfare plans and restructuring measures, on which early retirements are based.
• Savings banks agreements: the 2024–2026 Agreement, published by Resolution of May 23, 2024 (Savings Banks Agreement 2024–2026), and its chain of modifications and agreements, apply to a significant part of the financial business, also providing mechanisms for mobility, incentivized departures, and social plans in restructuring processes.
• Specific company agreements: for example, the Resolution of November 12, 2003, publishing the Agreement on early retirements and anticipatory retirements at Banco Urquijo, S.A. (Banco Urquijo agreement) illustrates how they detail:
  • Access ages (usually ≥52–55 years).
  • Guaranteed salary percentage until retirement.
  • Financing of the special agreement and management of unemployment benefits.

5. Tax treatment of incomes and severance payments

Early retirement incomes and severance payments fall under the Personal Income Tax:

• Law 35/2006, on IRPF (Law 35/2006): classifies periodic early retirement benefits as employment income and establishes exemption, with limits, for severance payments due to dismissal or termination.
• Law 26/2014, amending Law 35/2006 (Law 26/2014): adjusts the exemption regime and taxation of severance payments and employment income, with direct impact on the net design of early retirement packages.

In practice, banking early retirement agreements combine this labor, Social Security, and tax framework to configure voluntary or forced exit plans that respect legal minimums (ERE, social plans, protection of workers over 50) and optimize taxation for workers and the entity.