The Superior Court of Justice (TSJ) of Cantabria has recognized the right of a 58-year-old worker to receive a lifetime pension of 2,252.50 euros per month after proving that his health condition prevents him from continuing to carry out his usual profession.
The court ruling comes after the National Social Security Institute (INSS) denied the request administratively, forcing the operator, who suffers from serious physical ailments and anxiety, to resort to justice to protect his economic support.
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As detailed in the sentence, the affected person held the position of workshop manager in a metallurgy company, a highly demanding activity that became unattainable due to a limiting ischial pathology and a generalized anxiety disorder with panic attacks.
The court thus ratifies the previous ruling of the Social Court No. 6 of Santander, rejecting the Social Security appeal and consolidating a benefit that guarantees the stability of the worker in the face of the chronicity of his ailments.
The TSJ dismisses the INSS appeal due to the lack of improvement after four years
The judicial process began in 2024, when the worker alleged severe physical problems and a history of stress and grief that did not subside. The magistrates of the TSJ of Cantabria based their decision on the persistence of the limitations and the lack of response to treatments.
Demanding the reinstatement of a person with this clinical condition to a position of responsibility in the metal sector would mean ignoring accredited medical reality.
The court emphasizes that the plaintiff underwent four years of drug treatment and psychotherapy without success. For the court, this period far exceeds the usual period for considering a disorder as chronic, which invalidates Social Security’s argument that the pathologies were not serious enough to constitute a permanent disability.
A pension of 2,252 euros for total permanent disability
The key to the resolution lies in the qualification of the disability. The court does not recognize an absolute disability, which would prevent any type of work, but rather a total permanent disability for his usual profession.
This means that, although the operator cannot return to working as head of a metallurgy workshop, the sentence does not close the door to him performing other less demanding jobs compatible with his ailments.
In economic terms, justice establishes that the benefit must be equivalent to 55% of its regulatory base, to which is added a 20% increase due to its age (58 years), a factor that makes reintegration into a sector other than the usual one difficult. This combination results in the amount of 2,252.50 euros per month for life.
The benefit will be reviewed to check the medical evolution
Despite the finality of the ruling regarding the right to a pension, the situation is not sealed in an immovable manner. As it is a disability based in part on psychiatric pathologies and lumbar ailments, the ruling contemplates that the worker’s condition be reviewed periodically by the INSS.
The objective of these ex officio reviews is to monitor whether significant changes or unexpected improvements occur that allow the service to be adjusted or modified in the future. However, as long as the current limitations that “cut off” their work capacity in metallurgy persist, the worker will maintain the right to this economic compensation to avoid falling into a precarious situation after decades of contributions and physical wear and tear.