The Supreme Court Declares a Disciplinary Sanction Without a Fixed Date Invalid Due to Lack of Legal Certainty

Is a Sanction Without a Date Legal?

In its Judgment 571/2025 of June 2025, the Spanish Supreme Court addressed an important issue in labor law: whether an employer may impose a disciplinary sanction without setting a specific date for its enforcement, leaving its execution entirely to management’s discretion.

The Case

An employee was sanctioned with a 60-day suspension without pay. In the sanction letter, the company stated that it would be applied “when indicated by management,” without specifying a concrete date or any objective criterion defining when the sanction would begin.

The employee challenged the sanction, alleging non-compliance with the formal requirements established by law — specifically, a violation of Article 58.2 of the Workers’ Statute (Estatuto de los Trabajadores, ET) and of the doctrine established by the Supreme Court’s decision of 15 September 1988.

After passing through the Labour Court of Barcelona and the High Court of Justice of Catalonia, the case reached the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court’s Decision

The Supreme Court upheld the nullity of the sanction, as it failed to comply with Article 58.2 of the Workers’ Statute, which requires that sanctions for serious or very serious offenses be communicated in writing, expressly indicating the facts motivating the sanction and the date on which it takes effect.

According to the Court’s doctrine, deferring the enforcement of a sanction until the appeal period has expired or the sanction has become final is lawful. However, leaving its execution entirely to the unilateral discretion of the employer, without setting any specific or verifiable criterion, is not.

The ruling concludes that such practices violate the principles of legal certainty, proportionality, and balance in the employment relationship. A sanction whose execution depends solely on the employer’s future decision, without any objective timeline or conditions, lacks legal validity.

Key Takeaways for Employers

This decision serves as a reminder to organizations of the importance of:

• Ensuring strict compliance with formal requirements in disciplinary proceedings.
• Notifying sanctions in writing, with a clear description of the facts and a specific start date.
• Including in the sanction notice either a precise effective date or a clear, objective criterion for its implementation.
• Avoiding ambiguous wording that leaves the execution of the sanction to the employer’s discretion.

Conclusion

The employer’s disciplinary authority cannot be exercised arbitrarily. Sanctions must be applied with transparency, legal rigor, and full respect for workers’ rights. This judgment reinforces legal certainty in labor relations and clearly defines the limits of employer discretion in disciplinary matters.