The Tribunal Superior de Justicia del País Vasco has ruled that Correos Express unlawfully fired a delivery driver who had worked for the company as a "false self-employed" contractor for 31 years. The court ordered the company to either reinstate him or pay him 89,954 euros in compensation.
False self-employed workers are people registered as freelancers who actually work under conditions of dependency typical of a salaried employee. The situation arises when a company uses a commercial contract to disguise what is really an employment relationship, avoiding obligations such as social security contributions, paid vacation and severance pay.
Under Spanish law, what matters is not the contract that was signed but the reality of the work performed. If dependency, subordination to the employer's interests, and integration into the company's structure are present, the relationship must be treated as employment. Case law has consistently reinforced this standard in recent years.
Labor inspections targeting false freelancers
Oversight of these practices has intensified in recent years. In 2025 Spain's Labor Inspectorate carried out around 1.2 million actions, including 281,614 visits to workplaces. Those visits uncovered 122,146 irregular jobs, among them 47,143 false self-employed workers, and recovered more than 51 million euros in unpaid wages.
Thirty-one years as a registered freelancer
The worker began providing services to Correos Express in 1992 under commercial self-employment contracts. For 31 years he carried out delivery and pickup duties, but the court found no genuine independence existed. The company organized his routes, set his schedules, tracked his activity through geolocation and required him to wear a uniform, evidence the court cited as showing dependency and full integration into the company.
Dispute over a new contract in 2023
The conflict began in December 2023, when the company asked him to sign a new commercial contract. He refused, considering the conditions abusive, and was dismissed as a result. He then filed a wrongful dismissal claim with the backing of the union UGT Euskadi, putting the question of his true employment status at the center of the case after more than three decades of continuous service.
Court orders reinstatement or nearly 90,000 euros
The Tribunal Superior de Justicia del País Vasco sided with the worker and declared the dismissal unlawful. The ruling requires Correos Express to choose between reinstating him or paying compensation of 89,954 euros, calculated on the basis of his seniority dating back to 1992. The court said the reality of the employment relationship prevails over its contractual form.
