Garamendi thanked the employers’ association for the confidence shown in him in his opening remarks. The CEOE president recalled that the organization represents everyone from large companies to SMEs and self-employed workers and that it works with “unity”.
A THIRD TERM WITHOUT RIVALS
Garamendi has led the employers’ association since 2018 and faced no rivals in this internal election. The situation was different in 2022, when the Catalan business organization Foment del Treball backed businesswoman Virginia Guinda’s candidacy, although Garamendi secured more than 80% of the support.
This year’s process was also very different from last year’s Cepyme elections, when the outgoing president, Gerardo Cuerva, and the new president, Ángela de Miguel, were involved in a heated campaign. This time, even Foment and the employers’ associations that had backed Guinda supported Garamendi, who can now serve a third term thanks to a change to the bylaws that set the limit at eight years.
TENSIONS WITH THE GOVERNMENT MARK THIS NEW TERM
The context of this third term points to continuity with the previous one, when relations with the government became notably strained. This contrasted with Garamendi’s first term, when agreements between unions and the executive played a greater role, including deals such as the 2021 labor reform, the COVID furlough schemes and the ‘rider law’, among others.
After that, the exchange of accusations was constant, particularly with Deputy Prime Minister and Labor Minister Yolanda Díaz.
