Paid leave and salary supplements: the scope of the "full pay"

In its ruling of March 10, 2026 (STS 242/2026, case no. 12/2025), the Supreme Court examines whether salary supplements linked to the job should be included while an employee is on paid leave.

The ruling confirms that the answer depends, first and foremost, on the provisions of the applicable collective agreement, but establishes an interpretative criterion of great relevance. In the case in question, the agreement expressly recognized the right to "full remuneration" during holidays, which led the Court to conclude that night shift and on-call bonuses should also be included.

The Court introduces a key distinction between the accumulation of the supplement — which is normally linked to the effective provision of services — and the remuneration regime in situations of inactivity (leave, holidays, or temporary incapacity). Thus, although functional supplements depend on actual work, the collective agreement may provide for their continuity in these circumstances to avoid a reduction in the worker's salary.

From this perspective, when the agreement uses broad terms such as "total remuneration", it should be understood to include all salary components that the worker would have received if they had worked, unless expressly excluded. The Court rejects the idea that the reference to the "peculiarities" of the supplements allows for their elimination, interpreting it solely as a rule for adjusting the calculation, not for excluding them.

Moreover, the ruling points out that Article 37.3 of the Workers' Statute does not specify the remuneration regime for holidays, meaning that the key lies in collective bargaining (Article 26 of the Workers' Statute). In the absence of clear provisions, legal doctrine tends to equate remuneration during holidays with ordinary remuneration.

In conclusion, this ruling consolidates the principle that if the collective agreement recognizes the right to the full salary, holidays must be paid as if the employee had worked, including the usual bonuses for the job, unless there is an express and clear exclusion in the collective agreement.

Article from the Labour Law Department of ECIJA Madrid.