A Barcelona labour court has upheld the dismissal of Carmen Macías, former head of compliance and good governance at Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB), after finding that she harassed a technical manager in her team.

The ruling means Macías’s dismissal stands under employment law. For TMB employees, it also leaves unresolved a separate criminal case involving three senior officials, opened after Macías made her own workplace-harassment complaint.

According to the judgment consulted by ARA, the court rejected Macías’s claim that her dismissal was unfair. Macías had argued that she was demoted and later dismissed in retaliation for internal investigations involving TMB executives.

TMB sources said the judgment “fully proves that there was harassment and that there has been no retaliation or conspiracy” in the dismissal.

Dismissal followed complaint by a subordinate

The court found that Macías was dismissed after a subordinate reported her for harassment. TMB argued in the proceedings that the dismissal was justified, and described it as the only possible measure given the seriousness of her actions.

Macías was responsible for compliance, the department that handles adherence to internal rules and standards. The ruling records that she opened four internal cases in which TMB executives were named as subjects of complaints.

  • One of those cases concerned a workplace-harassment complaint made by a female employee through TMB’s internal channel.
  • Macías has maintained that work on an investigation involving three executives led to retaliation against her.
  • Her lawyers at the Col·lectiu Ronda labour-law collective told ARA that they will appeal the employment ruling.

Anti-Fraud report and criminal case remain separate

Macías had protection as an informant from the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia (OAC), according to ARA. An Anti-Fraud report in 2025 concluded that her dismissal formed part of a possible case of retaliation.

The labour court’s decision addresses whether TMB lawfully dismissed Macías. It does not decide the separate criminal proceedings in which three senior officials are under investigation following her complaint.

Reported by Laia Galià, El País, lavanguardia.com, J. G. Albalat, Pol Pareja, El Periódico Barcelona.