A common problem of European Mediterranean countries such as Spain and Italy and Latin America is a large population with temporary jobs, which, apart from the lack of stability, does not enjoy the benefits of permanent contracts.

The labor reform approved in Spain in 2022 proposes a solution to this problem by introducing a discontinuous contract of indefinite duration, which was an unusual agreement between the left parliamentary coalition, unions and employers. This employment contract works periodically and intermittently, but only at times of the year required by the companies. In other words, sectors such as agriculture or hotel industry, which have a high demand for workers, can regularly hire the same workers only in those periods only in certain months.

The difference between a fixed-term contract and a fixed-term contract is that it is used only for extraordinary employment needs, such as an unplanned increase in business activities. At the end of the period of work with a permanently discontinuous contract, the employee does not receive compensation, because he is only suspended, and even stops paying social security contributions, because he will continue to work in the next cycle. Employees with these contracts enjoy payments and annual leave as a stable worker, but only during the period they are working. In the case of an objective, non-disciplinary dismissal, workers receive compensation of 20 days for each year worked, with a limit of 12 monthly payments.

(…) this contractual modality offers an alternative to the instability of temporary jobs…

This policy was very successful in Spain. According to Eurostat, the share of Spanish temporary employees between the end of 2021 and 2022 decreased from 25.2% to 18%. Furthermore, the Spanish Labor Force Survey shows that the population of workers with open-ended contracts will increase by 1.6 million, while the population with fixed-term contracts will decrease by 1.2 million in 2022. This change has a positive economic impact, as employees with open-ended and fixed-term contracts tend to spend around 81% and 72% of their income, respectively, according to data from the Bank of Spain. Although these results may change in periods of crisis, this contractual modality offers an alternative to the instability of temporary jobs, partly exacerbated by major technological changes, in both developed and developing countries. Part of the advantage of these contracts is greater stability for workers and employers, since both parties avoid the problem of finding or hiring new temporary positions. This greater contractual stability is also an incentive to invest in the training and professional development of cyclical workers with a consequent improvement in the quality of service and production.

In conclusion, intermittent permanent contracts could offer higher income and economic stability to temporary Latin American workers, either in their countries of origin or as temporary migrants in the United States or other developed countries. (OR)