The Ministry of Labor and Social Economy, in the hands of Yolanda Diazfollows its roadmap to the letter. A plan that includes the reduction of working hoursas a flagship measure, and a new increase in the Interprofessional Minimum Wage (SMI), which currently stands at 1,134 euros. A figure that could increase at the end of this year or at the beginning of 2025, as planned by Pedro Sánchez’s Executive.
However, these increases in the minimum wage do not apply to police officers or civil guards, whose base salary barely reaches 861.46 euros, nor to the military, whose base salary fluctuates between 702.92 euros (C2) and 844.57 euros (C1). That is to say, between 272.5 and 431 euros below the SMI. But why is the minimum interprofessional wage not applied to the State Security Forces and Corps or the Armed Forces? The answer is in Chapter I of the workers’ statute, in section 1.3. Specifically, it establishes that the following are excluded from the scope regulated by this law: “The service relationship of public officials, which will be governed by the corresponding legal and regulatory norms, as well as that of personnel at the service of Public Administrations and other entities, organisms and entities of the public sector, when, under the protection of a law, said relationship is regulated by administrative or statutory norms.” Or what is the same, military personnel, police officers and civil guards are excluded from the law by which the majority of workers in this country are governed, as are the rest of public officials.
In this regard, it should be noted that the current base salary of police officers and civil guards is governed by Law 11/2020, of December 30, on the General State Budget for the year 2024, as well as by the Table of Remuneration of Civil Servants, provided by the Ministry of Finance. Thus, an agent who has just joined the Police or the Benemérita (C1) will receive 10,337.52 euros per yeardivided into 12 payments, which is equivalent to approximately 861.46 euros gross per month. Amount to which must be added Two extra payments in June and December, the fixed part of which is 744.56 euros grosseach one. Finally, other factors that form part of their payrolls must also be taken into account, such as seniority, position, destination or territoriality, among others.
Ignoring Marlaska and Montero
In the case of the military, their base salary is determined by the Regulations on Remuneration of Armed Forces Personnel, the Basic Statute of Public Employees and the Budget Law of each year. Their case is even more “bleeding”, since the remuneration of the military was frozen since 2015, except for the increases provided for in the Budgets of each year for all Administration personnel. In March 2021, and after 16 years of turning a deaf ear to their demands, Pedro Sánchez’s Executive agreed to raise the salary of the military. Specifically, the Council of Ministers approved the Royal Decree that modified the Regulations on remuneration of Armed Forces personnel and which resulted in an increase of between 17.13 and 59.9 euros per month. An insufficient figure that has only been improved by the increases provided for in the Budgets of each year for all Administration personnel. The protests of military associations to the Minister of Defense have been of no use, Margarita Robles.
On the other hand, the various police unions and associations of the Civil Guard have offered the Executive a solution that would not affect the amount of “personnel expenses” in the General State Budget. Proposals that have been sent to the Minister of Finance, Maria Jesus Monteroas in the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaskaand which have fallen on deaf ears. What does this initiative consist of? It is simple, it would involve modify the so-called destination supplement and take the missing 272.5 euros from there. In this way, the payroll is maintained and does not imply an extra investment in the Budgets. On the other hand, 100% of the salary was also paid in extra payments, compared to the current percentage which ranges between 61 and 86 percent.
And although political parties have shown some interest in solving the problems of inequality and the situation of the military, police and civil guards, these promises do not go beyond the electoral programmes or the photo in Congress. The issue of the equal pay between State Security Forces and Corps. A chapter that the Interior Ministry and Grande-Marlaska, in this case, consider more than closed, despite the statements of the agents.