AJE Balears and CEAJE support the initiative #YoTuveQueElegir, which proposes six measures so that self-employed individuals and small business owners do not have to choose between starting a business and starting a family. The aim is for these proposals to reach Congress as a Non-Legislative Proposition.
The association of young entrepreneurs AJE Balears backed this initiative on Friday in Madrid, alongside the Spanish Confederation of Young Entrepreneurs (CEAJE) and territorial associations from across Spain, which was driven by AJE Andalucía, calling for a reform of the regulatory framework for balancing work and family life for self-employed workers and small business owners, as reported by Diario de Mallorca.
The proposal was presented at the headquarters of the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE) and includes six specific measures to facilitate the reconciliation of family and professional life for those who work for themselves or lead small businesses. The goal is for these proposals to reach the Congress of Deputies as a Non-Legislative Proposition.
The president of AJE Balears, Yoann Blanc, highlighted the specific difficulties faced by entrepreneurs in the Islands in balancing their family responsibilities with the continuity of their businesses.
“In the Balearic Islands, almost all of us who start businesses are self-employed or have small companies. When a child arrives, there is no one to replace you: you either stop the business or give up being present. Choosing between family and business. This cannot continue to happen.”
The meeting brought together representatives from AJE's territorial associations across Spain and included the participation of Lorenzo Amor, president of the National Federation of Self-Employed Workers (ATA), who supported the urgent need to address the lack of protection that self-employed workers face when they must attend to caregiving responsibilities.
For his part, the president of CEAJE, Antonio Magraner, emphasized the need to move towards a model that allows for the compatibility of entrepreneurship and personal life without one decision requiring the renunciation of the other.
“We cannot accept as normal that starting a business, running a company, or developing a professional career forces a choice between life projects and professional projects. Reconciliation is a business challenge, and we must address it from the reality of those who create jobs and those who work in our companies.”
The initiative #YoTuveQueElegir proposes six measures aimed at adapting protection and reconciliation conditions to the needs of self-employed individuals and small business owners:
Flexible leave for childbirth: the possibility to work part-time from the first day of leave, receiving 50% of the benefit and a 50% discount on the self-employed quota.
Equal breastfeeding leave: establishment of a paid and accumulative breastfeeding leave, comparable to that enjoyed by salaried workers.
Reduction of contributions for childcare: application of a proportional reduction of the quota for self-employed individuals with children under three years old, without altering their contribution base.
The other three measures complete the proposal, which is now seeking parliamentary support for its processing.
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