Dismissal during pregnancy in Spain: protection and rights
Employment law in Spain: English guides
Pregnancy receives special protection against dismissal in Spain, but it does not prevent every lawful termination of employment. The protected situation, the employer’s reason and the procedure must all be checked. This guide explains the rights and consequences for the employee and employer.
When the statutory protection applies
Article 55.5.b of the Workers’ Statute protects pregnancy from its commencement until the corresponding statutory suspension begins. Article 53.4 provides protection in objective dismissal. The protection applies unless the dismissal is established as justified on grounds unrelated to pregnancy or the protected right.
Proving that pregnancy existed at the relevant time is different from proving that the employer knew about it. The objective statutory protection under Articles 53.4 and 55.5 must also be distinguished from a finding of discrimination or another fundamental-rights violation. Where the protected statutory situation exists, discriminatory intent need not be proved to invoke that protection. The employer can nevertheless establish justified dismissal for unrelated reasons.
Other situations that need separate analysis
The law also protects specified periods of suspension connected with birth and circumstances linked to pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding. Protection after returning from birth, adoption, guardianship for adoption or foster-care suspension has its own requirements and a statutory twelve-month period from the relevant event. It should not be described as indefinite protection “after childbirth”.
Employer termination during probation must be examined under Article 14.2. Expiry of a temporary contract requires examination of its actual cause and any fraud or discrimination. These situations should not automatically be treated as identical to an ordinary disciplinary or objective dismissal.
What a judgment declaring dismissal void entails
- Reinstatement: return under the conditions that applied before dismissal.
- Back pay: the recognised period and applicable salary components must be calculated, with the legally required adjustments.
- Social Security: the corresponding contribution position must be regularised.
- Enforcement: if reinstatement does not occur or is defective, judicial enforcement procedures may be needed rather than waiting indefinitely for voluntary compliance.
These consequences are different from the ordinary compensation option in unfair dismissal. A void dismissal is not automatically exchanged for a thirty-three-day-per-year payment.
Additional damages and other liabilities
Damages do not arise automatically from every declaration of nullity. A claim based on a fundamental-rights violation must identify and substantiate its basis under Articles 179 and 183 of the Employment Jurisdiction Act. Moral harm and additional financial loss are distinct, and the same loss must not be compensated twice.
Where precise valuation of moral harm is difficult, the court can assess it prudently. Administrative penalty ranges may provide guidance in the appropriate case but are not an automatic compensation tariff, minimum or maximum. An administrative discrimination fine belongs to a separate procedure and is not paid to the employee as damages.
Related Spanish resources address damages following dismissal during pregnancy (in Spanish) and pregnancy discrimination and evidence (in Spanish).
What to do when you receive the letter
Keep the letter, contract, payslips and relevant medical documentation. Review any settlement document before signing. Preserve communications concerning the employer’s reason and any prior disclosure of pregnancy, without confusing knowledge with the separate statutory-protection test.
A dismissal challenge normally has a strict 20-working-day deadline, counted from the day after the effective termination date, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and applicable public holidays. Do not assume that August stops this deadline. Filing the required conciliation request suspends the countdown: it resumes on the day after conciliation is attempted or after fifteen working days without it taking place, with the time remaining, not a fresh twenty days. Private negotiations, a complaint to HR or an inspection complaint do not by themselves preserve the dismissal deadline.
Our Spanish guide to challenging dismissal during pregnancy (in Spanish) explains the documents, conciliation request and claim. The general dismissal checklist also sets out the immediate steps.
Reviewing the case in Madrid
Manrique de Torres Abogados reviews the documentation, remedies and procedural risks. An assessment of a case does not guarantee a court outcome. You can also read the Spanish version of this pregnancy-protection guide (in Spanish).
Legal sources
Workers’ Statute, Articles 14.2, 53.4 and 55.5–6 (Spanish legislation), Employment Jurisdiction Act, Articles 179 and 183 (Spanish legislation).
Discuss your case with Manrique de Torres Abogados
We can review your documents and explain the available options. Contact us or Book a video consultation. You can also call +34 685 807 112 or email info@manriquedetorres.com.
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