The social court number 1 of the Court of First Instance of Benidorm in Alicante has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the trade union CCOO, which sought to recognise laboratory workers at the Dénia hospital as staff employed directly by the regional health department.
The judge ruled that the case is identical to previous legal proceedings concerning the laboratory at Torrevieja Hospital, which resulted in a dismissal ruling by the Supreme Court. Consequently, the latest ruling mirrors the arguments used in that previous resolution to reject the union’s claims.
According to the 1st October ruling, CCOO had launched collective conflict proceedings against the health department, Analiza Sociedad de Diagnóstico SL, and Marina Salud. The union sought a declaration confirming that workers employed by Analiza and assigned to the public laboratory at Dénia hospital should be classified as permanent staff of the regional health department.
The magistrate noted that the Dénia hospital had been privately managed since 14th March 2005 through a public service concession contract awarded to Marina Salud, before being reverted to the public healthcare system in February 2024. Following the reversion, the health department tendered an emergency contract for clinical analysis and blood bank laboratory services to prevent any interruption in patient care. This contract was awarded to Analiza, running from the moment of reversion until the contract concluded in November 2025.
A resolution issued in October 2024 approved the list of personnel subject to subrogation following the termination of the contract, and the company relocated workers not covered by that transfer.
The judgement emphasises that the Supreme Court addressed an identical situation regarding the Torrevieja hospital in 2025. The union argued that the cases differed, but the magistrate rejected this assertion, noting that the analysis service was similarly outsourced via a construction and management contract. That management contract ended in January 2021, and ownership of the hospital was returned to the regional department free of charges, equipment, and installations.
Furthermore, the judge pointed out that records include a ruling from the contentious-administrative chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community, which resolved the challenge regarding the non-extension of the contract with Marina Salud upon the agreed deadline, ultimately dismissing the concessionaire’s appeal.
As with the Torrevieja case, the ruling highlights that the health department never indicated an intention to absorb the laboratory service directly. Instead, it immediately issued an emergency contract awarded to Analiza. Therefore, the Supreme Court doctrine applies directly, meaning the health department has no obligation to subrogate the personnel, and the lawsuit must be dismissed.
Additionally, the court found that the Supreme Court’s considerations regarding non-binding compliance with the second agreement on worker subrogation in public contracting for the Valencian Community also apply. The union had cited this agreement, but the judge noted it cannot be enforced because the regional health department is not a party to it and it holds no binding legal force.
Even without those considerations, the magistrate added that the claim could not succeed because a business succession took place regarding the laboratory personnel affected by the conflict who were not subrogated by the health department. Instead, they transferred to Analiza, a company that continued providing the service without interruption and for which these employees carried out their duties, according to witness testimony.
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