The ruling coalition of the San Juan de la Rambla Town Council, comprising CC, AUP-Sí se puede, and PP, and led by the nationalist mayor Juan Ramos Reyes, has condemned the employment dispute instigated by the local police, asserting that “neighbourhood security is not to be exploited as a means of coercion and pressure.” The local government stated, in an official communique, that the confrontation with the Local Police resulted in the cancellation of events during the Las Rosas neighbourhood festivities and accused their personnel of attempting to bring about a similar outcome for the San José pilgrimage last Saturday, “although, thankfully, this effort was in vain.”
“This ruling coalition will not permit – they assert in this announcement – the use of neighbourhood security as a means of coercion and pressure, especially when professionalism and the duty to carry out the responsibilities linked to a public salary paid each month should take precedence. This salary is funded by the taxes paid by everyone. We are not opposed to negotiations, provided they occur within legal boundaries and with the principle of equality for all municipal staff, without any differentiation.”
“We will not tolerate – they stress – our neighbours becoming the primary victims of this discord, as witnessed by the cancellation of events at the Las Rosas celebrations and the local police’s attempt, fortunately unsuccessful, to halt the San José pilgrimage. This is not the appropriate approach to achieve resolutions. We urge our police to adopt a rational stance and recognise that processes must unfold according to their designated timeline and within the established norms. Pushing matters to extremes does not ensure they are resolved more swiftly.”
The administration overseen by Juan Reyes expresses a willingness to “engage in dialogue and find common ground, provided the law is adhered to and principles of fairness and merit take precedence over personal whims and political ambitions.”
“Coercion”
They argue that the employment dispute between the local police and the town council stems from a failure to honour the agreement regarding the increase in specific supplements in their wages. Leaders from CC-AUP and PP claim that “after enduring persistent pressure and threats from this group since the mandate began, regarding the jeopardising of various socially significant events or leaving the town unmonitored, this ruling coalition feels the need to clarify that we have never refused to acknowledge or question the roles and professionalism of the local police force. It is entirely untrue that the working conditions of this group have been undermined. On the contrary, they emphasise – this group is in a privileged position compared to other council staff and even compared to similar officers in other municipalities.” The local administration asserts that “there are months when officers earn over 5,000 euros, significantly more than the remuneration of a senior municipal technician or the president of the Canary Islands Government.”
“The current circumstances also create additional disparity or discrimination against the remainder of the municipal workforce regarding public holidays, as they are also regarded as local employees who believe they should not have to work. In reality, however, due to their shift patterns, they often do have to. Nonetheless, each time they work on public holidays, they receive premium pay for overtime hours, irrespective of whether they were meant to work or not,” they continue. In conclusion, and based on reports from the Municipal Intervention, the ruling coalition asserts that “the Police service is not being delivered in line with the protocols established and approved by this local body, and furthermore, they are not adhering to the working hours mandated by current legislation, which makes the overtime payments requested for disbursement entirely unjustified. This assessment is also shared by the Government of the Canary Islands and was articulated in a report as far back as 2012.”
Union perspective
The union branch at San Juan de la Rambla Town Hall, representing the local police sector and in agreement with its members, has opted to declare a collective dispute against the administration and its governing body in light of what they perceive as “a mockery and a lack of respect towards the members of this group and their union representatives, who, after almost two years of seeking negotiations with the current governing body, consistently striving to reach an agreement and aiming to acknowledge and enhance the working conditions of this police group, which have been severely compromised, in addition to the increase in current personnel, which has been lacking for nearly twenty years, the government ultimately retracts, leaving the agreement reached on 12 July 2024 stalled and failing to fulfil what was settled.” The San Juan de la Rambla Local Police currently includes one officer and three agents.