The latest proposal, which reaches 9.5% in three years with a variable linked to GDP and the CPI, approximates positions with the unions
The agreement to raise the salary of civil servants between the Government of Spain and the unions is closer after the Ministry of Finance yesterday improved the amounts by which the salaries of this group will be increased both for next year and in 2024, although in both cases conditioned by the evolution of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Spain.
In the meeting that took place yesterday -the second between both parties-, the central Executive offered a proposal in which the wages of these workers will increase by 9.5% between 2022 and 2024, compared to the 8% that the Treasury had proposed 24 hours before in the first encounter. The unions – at least the UGT and CC OO – left satisfied yesterday after four hours of talks with representatives of the Ministry, waiting for their management bodies to study the document today and assess its approval.
For this year, the same idea is maintained: that officials improve their salaries by 1.5%, in addition to the increase applied since the beginning of the year (in January they rose 2%, when inflation was still around 4 %). This additional increase is retroactive precisely from January 1 of this year.
With the improvement proposed yesterday, the representatives of the UGT and CC OO are in favor of a possible agreement
The substantial improvement will come next year, when civil servants’ salaries will rise by 3.5%. This is one percentage point more than in the last Treasury proposal. Specifically, the Government has proposed to the unions (UGT, CC OO and CSIF) a fixed increase of 2.5% with two variables: one, of an additional 0.5% linked to the accumulated CPI for 2022 and 2023, provided that inflation ends above 6% in both years; and another additional half percentage point if Spain grows above 5.9% in those two years.
Fixed plus variable
And for 2024, the Treasury proposal goes through a rise that can reach 2.5%. It would be a fixed 2% and a variable of half a percentage point more if the accumulated CPI for 2022, 2023 and 2024 exceeds 8%.
With these numbers on the table, the UGT and CC OO unions showed a position closer to agreement than to rupture. In fact, in UGT, its general secretary of Public Services, Julio La cuerda, advanced yesterday that the organization would accept this last proposal from the Government. In the case of CC OO, its coordinator of the public area, Humberto Muñoz, clarified at the end of the meeting that he would have liked more progress, especially in the non-salary part – the one related to the 35-hour working day and other issues –, although he showed his willingness to agree, which in any case has to be assessed by the union.
Next Monday another meeting has been called, in which CSIF hopes to get the Treasury to increase its offer to 10% in three years
The organization most reluctant to accept it is CSIF, the main civil service union. They refer, again, to the meeting that will take place next Monday, since they consider it insufficient and will require reaching a total increase of at least 10% in the next three years.
The salary increase that the central government approves this year will have a huge impact on the Region, since it will affect the remuneration of some 103,500 people who work for the public sector, according to the average of the Active Population Survey for the year 2021. Of these, 58,843 are employees of the Community.
Union front in the Community in favor of the 35-hour week
Julian Mollejo
The meeting of the Sectoral Board of Administration and Services of the Autonomous Community yesterday revealed the coincidence of all civil servant unions in claiming the 35-hour week.
The purpose of the meeting was to analyze how the new decree law on administrative simplification prepared by the autonomous Executive affects public employees, but during the time for questions and answers, the four unions represented at the table, CC OO, UGT, CSIF and the federation formed by ANPE and Satse, proposed the recovery of the 35-hour weekly shift. The general director of Public Function, Carmen María Zamora, avoided making a statement as there was still no official proposal.
The spokeswoman for the Executive, Minister Valle Miguélez, declared yesterday, after the meeting of the Governing Council, that they are “waiting” to hear the formal proposal on the implementation of 35 hours and the result of the negotiations of the Ministry of Finance with the unions, but recalled that the Region is the worst financed autonomy.
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