Special Information Briefing COVID-19 (No. 4): Royal Decree-Law 8/2020 of 17 March on extraordinary urgent measures to address the economic and social impact of COVID-19

On 18 March 2020, Royal Decree Law 8/2020 of 17 March on urgent extraordinary measures to deal with the economic and social impact of COVID-19 (the “RDL”) was published in the Official State Bulletin. The RDL establishes a new range of measures, mainly relating to the economy and employment, which expand and enhance those already adopted through the Royal Decree-Laws approved in recent days, as well as Royal Decree 463/2020, of 14 March, which declares the state of alarm for the management of the health crisis caused by COVID-19.

MEASURES RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT

The RDL has included certain measures in the area of employment which are analysed in detail in Schedule I (Measures relating to temporary workforce restructuring plans -ERTE-) and Schedule II (Other employment measures) of this legal briefing. It also provides that extraordinary measures in the area of employment shall be subject to a commitment by the company to maintain employment for a period of six months from the date of resumption of activity.

MEASURES TO SUPPORT THE ECONOMIC ACTIVITY

As a follow-up to the range of support measures for the business sector provided for in Royal Decree-Law 7/2020 of 12 March, the RDL provides for much more ambitious measures from an economic standpoint aimed mainly at guaranteeing the liquidity of the Spanish business sector in the face of the temporary and exceptional situation caused by COVID-19.

The entire content of the Information Briefing can be found in the PDF.