LARGE companies in Spain will soon have to offer customer service in Catalan and other co-official languages when requested.
The change comes after political party Junts per Catalunya reached an agreement with the Spanish government to include the measure in the new Customer Service Law.
It will apply to companies with more than 250 employees or annual revenue above €50 million.
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Customers will be able to make complaints or requests in Catalan, Basque, Galician, or Valencian if the product was bought in those regions, even if they later call from another part of Spain.
Written communication from companies will also have to be in the language chosen by the customer at the time of purchase.
Junts has called the reform “a change of paradigm” because it guarantees linguistic rights regardless of where the customer is located.
Party spokesperson Miriam Nogueras argued that Catalans should have “the same linguistic rights as a French or English person” when dealing with businesses.
The law will require companies to give staff the necessary training to handle calls in Catalan and other co-official languages.
It will cover banks, insurers, energy providers, transport firms, phone companies, and other large service providers.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, however, has clarified that the obligation will only apply in territories where co-official languages are recognised, such as Catalonia, Galicia, and the Basque Country.
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Minister Pablo Bustinduy stressed that the measure must respect Spain’s Constitution, which recognises co-official languages only in specific regions.
The reform is still under discussion in parliament, where over 200 amendments will be debated in the coming weeks.
Junts says the deal avoids an “invasion of Catalonia’s powers” and ensures better treatment of customers who want to use their own language.
