Vacation Management: Rights and Obligations Under Spanish Law
Vacation management is one of the most important (and sometimes contentious) responsibilities of any company. Understanding the regulations well will help you manage your team's vacations fairly, legally, and efficiently.
How many vacation days does the law establish?
The Workers' Statute (Art. 38) establishes a minimum of 30 natural days of vacation per year. This is approximately equivalent to 22 business days (excluding weekends).
- The 30 natural days are the legal minimum. Collective agreements can improve this (and many do)
- Vacations are non-waivable: you cannot agree that the worker won't take them in exchange for compensation
- The only exception is end-of-contract settlement: if vacation days remain unused when the contract ends, they are paid in the final settlement
Want to calculate the exact days an employee is entitled to? Use our free vacation calculator.
Proportional calculation
If a worker hasn't worked the full year, vacation is calculated proportionally:
Formula:
Vacation days = (Natural days per agreement / 365) × Days worked in the year
Can vacations be split?
- At least one period must be a minimum of 2 uninterrupted weeks
- The rest can be split by agreement between company and worker
Part-time workers get the same days
A part-time worker is entitled to the same vacation days as a full-time worker. There is no proportional reduction of days. What varies is the pay during those vacation days.
Sick leave during vacation
- Unused vacation days are NOT lost due to sick leave
- The worker has the right to take them later, even beyond the calendar year
- If sick leave starts before vacation, it is postponed
- If sick leave occurs during vacation, those days don't count as vacation
How to manage vacations efficiently
A vacation management software lets you:
- Automate requests: Employee requests, manager approves or rejects
- View team calendar: See at a glance who is on vacation
- Calculate balances automatically: Available, taken, and pending days
- Avoid overlaps: Alerts when too many team members request the same period
Conclusion
Vacation management has more legal nuances than it seems. If you're looking for an efficient way to manage your team's vacations, try RegulaKit free for 30 days.