Albacete's metal sector seals its 2026-2028 agreement with 3.5% increases

The Provincial Delegation of the Ministry of Economy, Business and Employment in Albacete, under the Regional Government of Castilla-La Mancha, has agreed to enroll and register the new collective agreement for industries, new technologies, and services of the metal sector in the province, effective from January 1, 2026, to December 31, 2028. The agreement is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Albacete number 126, dated October 28, 2026, in the second section (Regional Administration), with official reference 27.319. The resolution was signed in Albacete on October 14, 2026, by the provincial delegate, Nicolás Merino Azorí.

What is published and who signs it

The text is granted by the social side, Comisiones Obreras (CC. OO.) and the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT), and by the business side, the metal sector associations integrated into FEDA. The registration is processed in accordance with Article 90 of the Workers’ Statute and Royal Decree 713/2010, of May 28, on the registration and deposit of agreements, and the agreement is identified with the code 02000195011981.

The scope of application covers all companies and workers in Albacete and its province dedicated to the metal industry and services, including manufacturers of components and maintenance of electrical systems for renewable energies, jewelry and watchmaking, plumbing, electrical installations, air conditioning, solar panels, cable laying and telephone networks, railway electrification, tower cranes, precision mechanics, recycling of metallic raw materials, and activities linked to technological infrastructures and telecommunications.

3.5% annual increases and CPI review

The economic conditions chapter establishes, effective January 1, 2026, an increase of 3.5% in all remuneration concepts, and another 3.5% for 2027 and 2028. To this is added a guarantee clause: if the year-on-year CPI for December exceeds that 3.5%, an additional increase equal to the difference will be applied, up to a maximum of 1%, effective in the following year. The final tables for 2026 are as follows:

• Group 1 (higher degrees and area management): 2,275.64 euros per month.
• Group 3 (area heads, industrial mastery, workshop head): 1,769.51 euros.
• Group 5-B (passenger car and truck driver, 1st class trade professionals): 1,579.36 euros.
• Group 6-B (assistant, receptionist, specialist, clerk): 1,534.74 euros.
• Group 7-A (messenger, security, laborer, cleaning): 1,512.23 euros.
• Per diems: overnight stay 34.67 euros, half per diem 19.92 euros, and full per diem 39.85 euros; mileage 0.52 euros.

Two extraordinary payments of one month’s salary are maintained, a night shift premium of 20%, a shift work premium of 5% of the base salary, and overtime hours with a 45% surcharge over the ordinary hour.

Shorter working day and 22 vacation days

The maximum annual working day decreases gradually: 1,776 hours in 2026, 1,772 in 2027, and 1,768 in 2028. The agreement also regulates the irregular distribution of up to 10% of the working day, with five days’ notice, a maximum extension of one hour per day, and a minimum rest period of twelve hours between working days.

Regarding rest, affected personnel will have 22 working days of vacation, calculated at 2.5 days per month worked in the event of contract termination, and a catalog of paid leaves that includes fifteen calendar days for marriage or registration of a domestic partnership, five for the hospitalization of relatives up to the second degree, and three for death.

Joint Commission, arrears, and union control

The Joint Commission is composed of two representatives from CC. OO. and UGT and two from the employers’ associations, based at calle de los Empresarios, 6, Albacete, with a maximum period of 20 calendar days to resolve inquiries. The parties adhere to the III ASAC of Castilla-La Mancha. The text also creates a Joint Provincial Commission for Occupational Risk Prevention and requires companies with 50 or more workers to reserve 2% of the workforce for people with disabilities.

A transitional provision allows for the payment of generated arrears within the month following the publication of the agreement or in a single payment after three months.

The agreement organizes the labor conditions of an industrial sector spread across the entire province and provides certainty to the workforces until 2028, with agreed increases above 3% annually and a working day that is reduced by eight hours over three years. For companies, the CPI revision clause and the timely payment of arrears introduce an immediate treasury burden that must be addressed in the last quarter of the year.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Albacete, no. 126, of October 28, 2026, Second Section (Regional Administration), pp. 3-34 (official reference: 27.319).