PROPERTY SEARCH

Date Published: 21/03/2023

ARCHIVED - Murcia union demands 35-hour work week for all public employees

ARCHIVED ARTICLE -

The CSIF also wants the local government to approve teleworking for civil servants in the Murcia Region

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - Murcia union demands 35-hour work week for all public employees

The Independent Central Union of Officials (CSIF) has called on the regional government in Murcia to reduce the working hours of all public administration workers to 35 hours per week, insisting it would create a better balance for staff while costing the local coffers relatively little.

Furthermore, the group has called for more effective measures of productivity during the working day as is done in private companies, something which is particularly topical since the Spanish government has thrown its support behind the four-day work week pilot project.

Claiming that the outdated public administration system is from the last century, CSIF president Juan Miguel López-Blanc has accused the regional government of delaying the transition to a 35-hour week but failing to provide any concrete figures about how much it would actually cost.

Furthermore, he insists that there is already 111 million euros in the 2023 Budget Resources Fund to implement the change.

While a reduction in working hours is at the top of the agenda, the union is also fighting for the right of public employees to take early or partial retirement, and it has asked the regional government to allow more teleworking.

Finally, CSIF wants to implement an electronic system whereby public employees can participate in important surveys that affect their working conditions.

In the neighbouring Valencian Community, officials are currently studying the feasibility of reducing the working day of civil servants to 35 hours a week, a proposal that was roundly rejected in January but which is now back on the table.

According to the Public Function Technical Table, if working hours of public employees were reduced, more part-time staff would have to be hired to cover them and although there are still no official figures, the unions indicate that around 4,000 positions would be affected.

In other news: Three police cars wrecked in high-speed chase through Los Alcazares, Murcia

Image: Pexels

Sign up for the Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin and get an email with all the week’s news straight to your inbox

Special offer: Subscribe now for 25% off (36.95 euros for 48 Bulletins)