Barcelona fined by Spain’s labour ministry for not meeting workplace regulations.
Spain’s Vice President and Labor Minister, Yolanda Diaz, announced on Wednesday that Barcelona Football Club, along with the Spanish Football Federation [RFEF], and two other lower-league clubs, have failed to comply with regulations requiring workplaces with at least 50 employees to have “equality plans” in place.
Barcelona FC responded by stating that they have had an equality plan in place since 2013 and clarified that, at the time of inspection by the Ministry, they were in the process of updating the plan.
“It is also incorrect to state that protocols for sexual harassment do not exist,” the Catalan club added. “We have, since 2020, had a protocol for the prevention and approach to sexual harassment for reasons of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.
“The club have not been penalised for wage divergence, either. We have not been notified of any non-compliance related to wage differentials and consequently there is no penalisation for the club in this matter.”
The statement also claimed that Barça had been “a trailblazer in the sporting world for its policies on gender equality.”
The women’s team of Barça has received strong support from the club in recent years, claiming their second Champions League title last season and supplying the core of players for the Spain team that triumphed in the World Cup and the UEFA Women’s Nations League.
For the past four seasons, they have dominated Liga F, with midfielders Aitana Bonmatí and Alexia Putellas winning the last three Ballon d’Or awards among them.
The ministry launched an inspection of 16 clubs with women’s football teams and the RFEF in August last year, following an international scandal caused by the federation’s former president, Luis Rubiales. He kissed forward Jenni Hermoso during the trophy presentation at the Women’s World Cup.
FIFA banned Rubiales from football for three years and he lost his job. He now awaits trial for sexual assault.
Díaz said the RFEF did not have the required protocol in place at the time of the Rubiales incident, as mandated by a 2020 law. The inspection also revealed this.
“We sent our world champions [to the World Cup] without an equality plan and without harassment protocols, which is very serious,” Díaz told reporters on Wednesday.
“[With these fines] we are sending a strong message that this has to change. There is no place for sexism in sports.”
Neither Diaz nor the Ministry disclosed the amount of the fines, but the highest fine for not having an equality plan or a sexual harassment protocol is €7,500. Among the other clubs that were inspected, Espanyol, a second-tier team, and Europa, a fourth division team, were found to not have appropriate equality plans, although they did have sexual harassment protocols in place.