The temporary scope of application of wage provisions of the Statutes of Predoctoral Research Fellows

Commentary on the judgments of the Tribunal Superior de Justicia del País Vasco 1632/2020 and 1633/2020, of 15 December

Abstract

The entry into force of the Statutes of Predoctoral Research Fellows, and, in particular, the provision set out in article 7.2 of a guaranteed minimum professional wage receivable by the body of research fellows bound by a predoctoral contract, raised the question of whether such wage increases should take effect immediately and, therefore, apply to predoctoral contracts entered into prior to the entry into force of the said norm –immediate effect– or, on the contrary, this provision of a guaranteed minimum income were only applicable to contracts entered into after the entry into force of the temporary norm –future effect–. Indeed, Tribunal Superior de Justicia del País Vasco judgments 1632/2020 and 1633/2020, of 15 December, the subject of this commentary, address and resolve this controversial matter for the first time.