National
Court officers strike reaches one-month mark in seven Spanish regions
By m.p.
Mar 5, 2008 - 6:11 PM

It has now been more than a month since the strike by court officers first began, and since that time more than 60,000 hearings, trials and judicial questionings have been unable to go ahead. The protest is taking place in seven Spanish regions – Asturias, Baleares, Castilla y León, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura, La Rioja and Murcia - where the court officers want their salaries to be made equal to regions where responsibility for the judiciary has been devolved.

Unions say that minimum services are being met, but explained that with more than 90% support for the strike the large volume of work has caused a backlog. A ninth meeting with the Justice Ministry is set to take place on Thursday, after the eighth attempt on Tuesday, where unions say they failed to reach a ‘satisfactory’ agreement.

The Ministry’s offer, EFE said, is a salary increase of 180 € a month. Not all of it would come together, however: the Ministry proposes a first payment of 60 € a month from January this year, with a lump sum of 600 € next February to cover an additional 50 € per month. The final phase of their offer is proposed for April 2009, and a pay rise of 70 €.

Unions have described the proposal as insufficient, and say they will continue with the strike if the offer is not improved ‘significantly’ at Thursday’s meeting.

Protestors in a Murcia court last month. Photo 20 minutos – www.20minutos.es