MADRID (Reuters) – The Spanish government will offer civil servants a 3.5 percent wage increase in 2023 to partially offset the effects of higher inflation, El Pais newspaper reported on Wednesday, citing unidentified Spanish government sources, citing anonymous union sources.
The 3.5% proposal will be negotiated with unions asking for more, the newspaper said, adding that the government may propose reducing the number of weekly working hours.
El Pais said a 3.5 percent public pay increase for all civil servants would cost the government about five billion euros ($4.8 billion).
A budget ministry spokesman declined to comment.
Last year, the government agreed to increase civil servants’ salaries by 2%, but annual inflation is currently much higher than it was at the time, at 10.5%.
European employers face growing demands from workers for wage increases to match or exceed inflation, which stands at or near its highest levels in three decades. Higher wages, in turn, are likely to raise prices of goods and services further down the road.
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