Central government is set to be short of some 630 million euros in order to be able to pay civil servants a part of the Christmas additional payment that was not paid in 2012 as well as to be able to meet costs associated with the purchase of military equipment, the settlement of outstanding payments by the development ministry and a contract to empty and clean the Russian ship that sank near the Canary Islands.
These costs are identified in a report accompanying a decree which authorises the payment of just over 25% of the Christmas “bonus.” A good portion of the 630 million will go towards this payment, estimated at over 250 million, although not all personnel in regional and local authorities are guaranteed settlement, as this will depend on their budgetary capabilities to meet it. If they cannot do so this year, then they will need to do so in a subsequent financial year.
The payment applies specifically to civil servants such as those within ministries, with regional governments and government agencies, but it does not apply to, for instance, workers with the Bank of Spain or the National Intelligence Centre. In addition to the payment, civil servants are to regain six of the days permitted for time off to attend to personal issues that they had been allowed before 2012. As this will involve individual administrations making decisions as to these days’ recuperation, the government does not know what the exact budgetary requirement will be, as it will be up to these administrations and to their need to cover for days off that are to be reclaimed.