Spanish employers must now disclose salaries, working hours, trial periods, and any use of algorithms in employment contracts. The new regulation aims to protect workers from hidden conditions and ensure clarity before any job begins.
Spanish employers now have to spell out salaries, working hours, trial periods, and any use of algorithms in every new employment contract. The change, approved by the Council of Ministers on September 8, 2026, shifts how job offers and workplace terms are communicated. According to the Spanish government, the reform puts a European directive on transparent and predictable working conditions into practice, expanding what employers must tell new hires.
For the first time, contracts must include clear details about pay, overtime, vacation, and the exact length and terms of any probation period. If a company wants a trial period longer than six months, it has to explain why. Open-ended or vague probation is no longer allowed—workers will know from the start when their trial ends and what is expected. All this information must also be accessible to employees with disabilities, as noted in a DLA Piper legal summary.
Employees with existing contracts can request any missing mandatory information, and employers must respond within 30 days.
The regulation goes further. If a company uses automated systems or algorithms to make decisions about hiring, firing, task assignments, or working hours, it must tell employees. While companies do not have to share source code, they must explain the criteria and logic behind these systems. This responds to concerns about hidden algorithmic management at work. The rule builds on Spain's earlier laws, which gave some workers the right to information about algorithmic decisions, but now extends this right to everyone, as reported by El Economista Jurist.
Current employees are included too. Anyone with a contract signed before the new rule can ask for missing information, and employers have thirty days to provide it. For new hires, all details must be given before work starts. The government plans to publish a standard contract template within twenty days of the law taking effect, but the exact start date and any transition rules will only be clear once the regulation appears in the official state bulletin (BOE). Several sources, including La Razón, report that the law will take effect 20 days after publication in the BOE.
Transparency is now required. If a company changes any key condition—salary, hours, or other terms—it must inform staff right away. Workers are entitled to keep copies of their contracts and any annexes, so they have proof of what was agreed. The regulation does not override collective bargaining agreements or existing labor laws, but it does require employers to be clear about the rules that apply.
The new royal decree replaces the previous 1998 regulation and introduces stricter requirements for justifying probation periods, a move described by La Razón as the 'causalization' of trial periods. This reform is presented as a significant strengthening of workers' rights to transparency, especially regarding algorithmic management, and is seen as an expansion of rights previously limited to certain categories of employees.
Automated decision-making is under closer watch. The law gives workers and their representatives the right to challenge any algorithm-driven decision that seems discriminatory or unlawful. This is meant to guard against hidden bias and unfair treatment, especially as more companies use digital tools to manage staff. According to DLA Piper, information about algorithms must also be provided in accessible formats for employees with disabilities.
Spain is not the only country tightening rules for employers. Other regions have introduced direct support for businesses and workers facing new regulations, as seen in recent measures in Ceuta. Spain's approach, though, focuses on transparency and worker rights rather than financial aid.
The main change here is the government's decision to address the realities of modern employment directly. By requiring companies to reveal not just pay and hours but also the logic behind automated decisions, Spain is setting a new standard for workplace transparency. Whether employers follow the rules in practice remains to be seen. For now, the message is clear: hidden terms and secret algorithms are no longer allowed in Spanish labor contracts.
