Jerez Council has taken the decision to lay off (ERE) a total of 390 staff as part of their ‘adjustment plan’ so as to ensure that they receive €328 million of ICO funds from the Ministry of Economy and Finance for the purpose of paying outstanding debts to suppliers.
Jerez is second only to Madrid in terms of debts owed to suppliers. The Council expects this measure to save €3 million in 2012, €94 million in 2013 and €100 million per year between 2014 and 2022. The staff to go are 300 from the municipal payroll and 90 from municipal companies.
The decision has surprised employees and the opposition, although the opposition would have been less surprised had they not boycotted the Council’s plenary session when the decision was taken.
The Mayor said that the ICO funds will enable suppliers maintain their workforce. The initial lay-offs affect 300 workers on permanent contracts with the Council and 90 employed by municipal companies. There are currently 900 Council employees on permanent contracts out of a total municipal workforce of 1,920 people. There are 580 employees in the various municipal companies.
Jerez Council spends around €301,000 per day in wages, although judging by the number of strikes relating to unpaid wages this is a theoretical figure.