Sebastián Moralo, a judge of the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia, and Manel Hernández, a partner at Sagardoy Lawyers and an employment law specialist, attempted to respond to this question on Thursday, 12 April 2012, as part of the continuing-education conferences organized by the Faculty of Legal and Political Sciences.
The
two speakers addressed this highly topical subject from different perspectives.
The room buzzed with anticipation as the audience waited to hear the opinions
of the speakers, whose challenge was to respond to the thought-provoking
question of whether labour reform is the solution to unemployment.
Rather
than simply expressing their personal opinions, the speakers talked to the
audience about the key changes brought about by this reform in terms of
employment measures, functional and geographical mobility, the substantial
amendments to working conditions, suspension and termination of contracts and
collective bargaining.
The
two guests agreed that labour reform is not the solution to unemployment, but a
useful tool, and that the changes made in the area of collective bargaining
could help put a stop to the high level of insolvency among small and medium
enterprises, because it gives employers the option of negotiating conditions
directly with workers, regardless of any collective agreement in place.
