Workers at the Mercadona Madrid Hive

Mercadona and the unions sign a new Equality Plan that increases transparency in their remuneration policy

14 december 2021
  • The new Equality Plan will enter into force on 1 January 2022 and will remain in place for two years, until 2023, coinciding with the renewal of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
  • The new Equality Plan updates the previous plan, which was agreed in 2019, adapting it to the recent changes in equality legislation and renewing the company’s commitment to equal pay.

Mercadona, a company of physical supermarkets and online sales has signed a new Equality Plan with representatives from the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT) (General Workers' Union) and the Comisiones Obreras (CCOO) (Workers' Commissions). The agreement will enter into force on the 1 January 2022 and will remain in place for two years, until 2023, coinciding with the renewal of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

This new plan, which renews the company’s commitment to transparency in its remuneration policy, updates the previous plan, which was agreed in 2019, adapting it to recent changes in equality legislation that place emphasis on the Principle of Equal Pay and the need to keep a record of Equality Plans.

With this new plan, Mercadona - which has had an Equality Plan ratified by union representatives for more than 12 years - has further consolidated its commitment to labour relations based on equality. The plan also builds upon the achievements of previous plans. For example, in 2020, 45% of management positions and 62% of positions on the Board of Directors were held by women. Indeed, equal pay has been a core value in the company’s business model since 1997, applying the principle of “equal pay for equal work” across the board. 

Rosa Enríquez, member of the UGT Equality Plan Follow-up Committee: “At UGT, we are very pleased with the agreement reached with Mercadona to update and adapt the Equality Plan. It consolidates the work that has been achieved by this committee in recent years, safeguarding equal opportunities for everybody working in the company”.

Silvia Yankowich, General Secretary of the Union Section of CCOO believes that “transparency is key when it comes to equality. As a result, with Mercadona, we have approached the matter with the aim of adapting to new times and using gender as a lens through which to assess each and every one of the factors that affect the working conditions for the workforce”.

Meanwhile, Ruth García, director of Labour Relations at Mercadona, has expressed her satisfaction about the agreement and has said that, “we can feel proud of this company, its business model and the way in which it is focused on continuously improving labour relations so that we can continue to strengthen our commitment to equality, high-quality employment and respect for diversity”.

Header image: Workers at the Mercadona Madrid Hive.