In Spain, employers hire detectives to verify if an employee is really sick on sick leave
In Spain, employers increasingly turn to private detectives to check suspicious cases of employees being on sick leave. At the same time, this practice has strict limitations: improperly organized surveillance can lead to lawsuits and compensation claims for violating employees' rights. This is reported by the Spanish publication El País.
The debate over the rising number of sick leaves in Spain has intensified questions about what tools employers can use to monitor potential abuses. Two interests collide in this area: the employee’s right to privacy and the employer’s right to protect productivity and the normal operation of the enterprise.
According to the National Institute of Statistics of Spain, from 2008 to 2025, the number of sick leaves in the country has doubled. The greatest increase was in cases of temporary incapacity not related to occupational diseases or injuries, but to common illnesses.
The General Council of Social Graduates of Spain stated that employee incapacity has become a "structural trend." Cases of temporary incapacity create difficulties both for companies and the state budget.
Under such conditions, employers use various control methods: checking the use of corporate equipment, video surveillance, or hiring private detectives. However, the latter tool is the most sensitive in terms of respecting human rights.
When a detective can monitor an employee
According to labor law professor Ana Belen Muñoz from Carlos III University in Madrid, an employee can challenge the admissibility of evidence obtained by a detective, but courts rarely recognize such materials as illegal.
Surveillance is legal, but "there are places where it is categorically prohibited," including the employee’s home and other "places closed to outsiders." As an example, she cites a decision by the Spanish Supreme Court this year, which allowed photographic surveillance in a gym. According to the court’s conclusion, the detective had permission to enter, so the premises were not considered "a space where personal, private, or family life could be violated."
At the same time, the detective’s activity must comply with the principles of reasonableness, necessity, appropriateness, and proportionality.
What evidence can be used in court
A private detective’s report in Spain can serve as evidence in court proceedings. It is important that it confirms specific facts relevant to the labor dispute.
For example, a detective exposed an employee who was limping and using crutches but was recorded on video doing sports. In another case, an employee on sick leave due to back pain was caught working in a car repair shop.
At the same time, there have been cases where the court sided with the employee. In particular, in one case, the court supported an employee who visited bars during sick leave due to depression, recognizing that it contributed to his recovery.
Detectives' activities are regulated by law
The president of the Professional Association of Private Detectives of Spain, Antonio Labrador, noted that detectives' activities are regulated by the Private Security Law of 2014.
The document stipulates that the main principles are respect for the fundamental rights of the person under surveillance and the prohibition of intrusion into places where the right to privacy may be violated. The detective’s report must be prepared in accordance with the law, confirm the client’s legitimate interest, and contain a statement of established facts.
The detective’s report may include photo and video materials, which he confirms in court. The Spanish Supreme Court recognizes a private detective in the process as a "qualified witness."
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