The challenge arises after detecting modifications in the agreement's text that, according to CCOO, were not addressed by the negotiating committee. The general secretary of CCOO Industria in Cádiz, Pedro Lloret, warns that "they cannot negotiate it unilaterally" and that Comisiones Obreras' participation was necessary.
The union federation points out that the changes agreed upon between the metal employers' association (Femca) and UGT-Fica exceed the powers of the joint parity committee, in which CCOO does not participate as it did not sign the agreement. The organization labels these changes, detected after their publication in the Official Gazette of the Province (BOP), as "opaque" and calls them "illegal".
Specifically, the lawsuit refers to several articles, including Article 10 (transport and allowances), 19 (economic fund), 20 (absorption of concepts), 24 (agreement insurance), 25 (working hours), 27 (annual leave), 40 (fixed-term employment contract), as well as third provision (submission to Sercla) and sixth (arduous-toxic bonus).
Lloret explained that as early as September, they detected "errors and some modifications" following the agreement's publication in the Cádiz BOP on September 1st. After being informed that an official record would be made to verify this, the next news was the re-publication of the agreement on December 24th, which not only corrected errors but also included the changes. One cited example is the increase in kilometers for allowance payments, which could mean that "many companies will not pay the half-day allowance that they had been paying us for many years".
Regarding Article 27 on annual leave, Lloret detailed that there is a text based on 23 working days and a calculation for intensive working periods, a wording that "does not appear in the previous agreement, nor was it presented at the negotiation table".
After studying the changes and obtaining the assessment from the Federation of Industry of Andalusia and CCOO's legal department, the Cádiz union has decided to file the lawsuit before the Social Chamber of the TSJA. This decision was also influenced by "numerous complaints" received from affected workers.
CCOO questions the "malpractice" of Femca and UGT, accusing them of "haste" in signing the agreement in August and of "secretly drafting another agreement text", with the "approval of the Territorial Delegation of Employment".
Regarding the possibility of mobilizations, Lloret considers it "too premature" to propose them, as they first "would need to know what the court values" and "what the High Court opines".
