In February 2025, the Vice President and Minister of Labor of Spain, Yolanda Díaz, and the Secretary of State for Employment, Joaquín Perez Rey, convened the International High-Level Expert Committee on Democracy at Work. Isabelle Ferreras serves as Chair of the Committee. The Committee was tasked with examining the application of Article 129.2 of the Spanish Constitution — which makes a dual promise to all workers in Spain: access to voice and access to ownership — and with proposing a pathway for its effective implementation. The Committee’s final report, Two Promises to Those Who Work: Voice and Ownership, was presented by Isabelle Ferreras to Minister Yolanda Díaz on February 2, 2026 in Madrid.

The Diagnosis

Despite Spain’s remarkable recent achievements — including a landmark labour market reform that reduced unemployment and fuelled economic growth — Article 129.2 is not currently being applied through effective legislation. Spain remains among the least developed countries in the European Union in terms of workers’ democratic participation in the workplace and access to company ownership. The Committee identified nine interconnected challenges that firm democratisation could help address:

1. The succession crisis faced by Spanish SMEs — an estimated one third of SME owners will retire over the next decade, placing approximately 600,000 jobs at risk each year
2. The competitiveness lag — particularly in job quality and innovation
3. Abuses and misuses of AI in the workplace
4. Loss of economic sovereignty and territorial resilience
5. Fragmentation of the value chain and job informality
6. Weakening of civil society and unions
7. Poverty and inequality — Spain’s working poverty rate is 13.7%, doubling among immigrants
8. Disillusionment with democratic institutions
9. Damage to the natural environment — seven of nine biophysical planetary limits have now been transgressed

Key Recommendations

The full recommendations are structured around two pillars:

Voice

• Reinforcement and new legal requirements for worker participation in operational decisions, including a new Co-decision Right to shape and consent to the deployment of AI at work
• Inclusion of workers in strategic decisions via Boards, with minimum statutory thresholds aligned with European best practices in codetermination: 1/3 of board seats for firms with 50–1000 employees; 1/2 for firms above 1000 employees

Ownership

• Minimum statutory thresholds opening access to 2% of share ownership to workers
• New Citizens’ Funds designed to acquire shares and accelerate ownership transfer
• A transition plan supported by ESOP-type financing mechanisms for workers to acquire their company’s shares in anticipation of a founder or owner’s retirement

Implementation

A new Corporate Democratic Development Index (CDDI) will measure firms’ progress on voice and ownership using two Participation Scoring Scales. Data from the CDDI will feed into a bonus/malus incentive-based mechanism mobilising public subsidies, corporate tax rates, fiscal benefits, and privileged access to public procurement to encourage firms to progress along a regenerative democratic path. Read the full report →

Official Presentation

Official presentation of the Report by Isabelle Ferreras to the Minister of Labor and Social Economy, Yolanda Díaz, and her response. February 2, 2026, Madrid.

Committee Members

Julie Battilana (Harvard Business School & Harvard Kennedy School), Sara Lafuente Hernández (Université libre de Bruxelles / ETUI), Jeremias Adams-Prassl (University of Oxford), Edurne Ormaetxea Aurrekoetxea (University of Deusto), Vicente Salas Fumás (University of Zaragoza), Benjamin Braun (Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies), Erinch Sahan (Doughnut Economics Action Lab), Daniel Innerarity (European University Institute / University of the Basque Country), Sergio Gonzalez Begega (University of Oviedo), Isabel-Gemma Fajardo García (University of Valencia), Antonio Baylos (University of Castilla-La Mancha).

→ Full committee profiles

Press Coverage

• El País, February 20, 2025
• Le Monde, February 25, 2025
• EFE, February 22, 2025
• → All press coverage