The group of national police and civil guards that had locked themselves in the headquarters of the Ministry of the Interior left the premises directed by Fernando Grande-Marlaska in the early morning after being "evicted" by other agents and "ignored" by the Government.
The protest had been communicated this Tuesday by several unions of the National Police and associations of the Civil Guard, who announced a "peaceful and indefinite sit-in" in the Interior after declaring the negotiation with the Secretary of State for Security broken in order to achieve a "decent retirement."
The SUP, Jupol, and UFP joined the sit-in representing the unions of the National Police, along with AUGC, Jucil, AEGC, ASES-GC, and Unión de Cabos on behalf of the professional associations of the Civil Guard.
In statements to the media after their exit from the Ministry, the general secretary of JUPOL, Aarón Rivero, denounced that "once again" police officers and civil guards have been "ignored" and "thrown to the feet of the horses" by the Interior.
Rivero recounted that agents from the Prevention and Reaction Unit (UPR) demanded that they leave the ministerial headquarters, to which they agreed in order not to put "their colleagues in a compromising position" and "avoid legal reprisals," since, he claimed, they were warned of "a crime of disobedience" that "could even be some occupation of a public building."
"We have decided to leave peacefully because the next thing would have been, perhaps, a scene that would not benefit anyone," said the general secretary of Jupol, who explained that they held a meeting with the Secretary of State for Security, Aina Calvo, to whom they reproached for having "broken the negotiation table" and ordered their expulsion.
The union leader emphasized that the demand remains "completely active" for the National Police "to be recognized as a high-risk profession" and enjoy "the same conditions" as local and regional police forces.
Negotiation at the technical table
Following the announcement of the call for general elections on November 29, a dozen unions of the National Police and associations of the Civil Guard demanded that the Interior complete the open negotiation to improve early retirement.
To this end, they sent a letter to the Secretary of State for Security, Aina Calvo, requesting a new meeting. According to the unions, the meeting took place this Tuesday and they were informed that it was not possible to meet their demand for a dignified retirement due to the electoral call.
On September 23, after a session of the technical table, the union organizations reported that the dialogue to address their historical claim to improve early retirement —with the aim of equating to other regional and local bodies— was progressing at a "good pace," as the Secretary of State for Security took on news of "great significance."
The representatives of police and civil guards referred to the improvement of the retirement of group C1, which would be around 39,000 euros, and of group A2, which would reach the maximum pension both in the General Social Security Regime and in Passive Classes.
"The pension stops being calculated on a base frozen in the past and starts to reflect the real evolution of salaries," explained representatives from SUP and AUGC.
From Jupol and Jucil, they also responded to the proposal from the Secretary of State for Security, although calling to avoid "triumphalism" and reminding that their demand is "to raise the annual retirement pension of national police and civil guards of group C1 to 39,000 euros."
The UFP union was another of the organizations that assessed the Administration's offer "favorably," although it considered it insufficient by demanding to set the regulatory amount "to a minimum of 39,000 euros per year." "There is progress but there is still no agreement," it emphasized.