Unions CCOO and UGT have pressed for a salary rise for public sector workers amounting to 0.5% starting in October, provided inflation remains elevated. This increment would be layered on top of the 2.5% raise already in place since January and planned for the current year, with a retroactive effect from the start of the year. It is a response to the ongoing inflation scenario and the government’s commitment to protect purchasing power for civil servants.
The proposed adjustment would require the government to issue a one-time supplementary payment, often referred to as a paguilla, to cover the increases that were not applied in the first ten months of the year. The amount of this lump-sum compensation would vary by employee category, ranging from €48 to €108 for the eligible workers.
Industrial facilities welcomed the development as favorable news for all public employees in two separate statements issued this Wednesday. They indicated that they are awaiting the Ministry of Finance’s September CPI data to finalize the machinery to be activated and that the new increase would take effect as soon as possible from the Generalitat, though it was not clarified whether this would occur in the upcoming payroll period or in October.
Illustrative calculations based on two real-world scenarios help illuminate the impact. In one example, a senior officer classified as A1 level 30 has a gross monthly salary of €2,413.66 this year, excluding additional pay tied to three-year terms. For this employee, the 0.5% increase translates to an extra €12.13 per month starting in October, plus a one-time payment of €108.60. For civil servants in the subcategory C2 level 15, the same 0.5% rise yields an additional €5.40 per month and a paguilla of €48.60.
The Ministry of Finance and Public Services reached a consensus with CCOO and UGT, with another union, csif, voting against the multi-year wage agreement. While several variables linked to inflation and GDP will shape payroll trajectories, current plans already foresee increases extending through 2024.
The agreed baseline for this year includes a 2.5% salary uplift, with the possibility of adding a further percentage point if inflation and related indicators meet predefined thresholds. Inflation is the central topic of discussion for the unions, and the agreement rests on a specific condition: that the average harmonized CPI for 2022 and the September 2023 CPI exceed 6%. Given that the 2022 CPI was reported at 8.3%, the government would need to sustain higher wage growth unless September’s CPI data indicate a meaningful downward shift.
provisional CPI data for September would be released publicly by INE late in September and finalized in mid-October. Both the Ministry of Finance and the Generalitat have been asked to approve the CPI figures in order to trigger the machinery activation and to authorize the corresponding payroll increase, including the administrative paguilla where applicable.