Updated:01/21/2022 17:07h
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The complex situation of Ousmane Dembele in Barcelona, condensed in his effective exclusion from culé sports activity after being left off the list against Athletic, has generated in the last hours enough legal arguments so that the French footballer could denounce the Catalan club for violating his labor dignity and his honor and, therefore, claim damages. «Dembélé could even explore the option of unilaterally terminating his contract under the article 50 of the Workers’ Statute which, in a subsidiary manner to Royal Decree 1006/1985, applies to all professional footballers”, explains Toni Roca, director of the Sports Law Institute and the Himnus law firm, specialized in football.
This end, the one-sided extinction of the contract, it is more complicated to claim, but not impossible “because it could invoke serious and culpable breach of its working conditions by Barcelona,” he clarifies Roca.
Article 50 of the Workers’ Statute establishes that “substantial modifications in the working conditions (…) that result in the impairment of the dignity of the worker». This route includes the payment of compensation for unfair dismissal.
“I understand that, because it is much more drastic and complex, and he only has six months left on his contract, it is normal for Dembélé not to consider this option. to claim damages It is different, because it is a path that he could insist on even after leaving Barcelona, ”adds Roca. « Recent events invite us to study the legal consequences. And I don’t just mean that Xavi has decided to remove him from the call for non-sporting reasons, as he himself has acknowledged, but rather because a public message has been launched from the club questioning his commitment to the entity for not wanting to expand his contract», adds Roca.
“Here it can be interpreted that Dembélé’s working conditions have been modified by the company, because the player is deprived of an essential aspect of his activity, which is to play, not because of a technical decision, but because of non-sports reasons, as the club acknowledges. This is, for not renewing, something that the player is not obliged to. The footballer does not breach his employment relationship with Barcelona by refusing to extend the contract, “adds Roca. Furthermore, it is clear that there is a violation of their labor dignity and his honor by hinting that he is a bad professional athlete. It is precisely what Dembélé defended yesterday in his statement through social networks. It is a decision that could be accredited, ”deduces the director of the Sports Law Institute.
«With Dembélé there is no mobbing»
Toni Roca, however, rules out that the footballer can explore the path of workplace harassment or mobbing because he hardly has legal arguments that conform to what the lawisland Spain considers such a case. “For example, one of the mandatory conditions for a company to be considered guilty of workplace harassment is to perpetuate over time an action vexatious towards your worker. In this case there is no repetition. The first time that Xavi left Dembélé off the list for not renewing was yesterday. It is a different matter if, for example, Dembélé had not been called up for six months, training outside the team with continuous statements against him. In that case, a complaint could be studied by Workplace Harassment» explains Roca. “In addition, it is clear that there are economic interests on both sides, that is to say, that Barça wants to get an economic return from the player and that is why it acts like this and the footballer, in turn, intends to improve his contract or go to another club to win. more taking advantage of it will be book agentand. In this scenario, no judge would treat Dembélé’s situation as mobbing,” he insists.
By last, Tony Rock He insists that in the future there could be many more Dembélé cases because the international transfer scenario invites this model to be repeated, especially since many players of the highest elite begin to see their departures with the freedom letter as an opportunity. «Dembélé is not, nor will he be, the last player that a big club signs for a huge amount of money hoping that the footballer will renew after the first term signed in the contract or leave for a juicy amount in case you refuse to renew. The teams must begin to think that, if they pay such high amounts, they run the risk of scenarios like this happening, that is, that the footballer refuses to leave or renew and that influences the initial investment made by the club without the player commits any illegality. Keeping our distance, it is something similar to what has happened with Sergio Ramos or what is speculated that could happen with Mbappe, in case he leaves PSG next summer. Surely there will be more similar situations in the future”, concludes Roca.
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