Marbella Mayor Under Investigation for Excessive Overtime Payments
The Mayor of Marbella, Ángeles Muñoz, is once again in the news due to the excessive payment of overtime at the Marbella City Council, particularly during pre-election periods. This Thursday, she was in Seville with the Minister of Development. The Andalusian Anti-Fraud Office has requested the government team to open an internal investigation to clarify responsibilities in this regard and even take the matter to the Court of Auditors.
Scandal Surrounding Overtime Payments Continues
The scandal surrounding the overtime payments made by the Mayor of Marbella to municipal workers, usually from the Cleaning or Parks and Gardens departments, continues. According to a report published this Thursday by “elDiario.es”, the Andalusian Anti-Fraud Office has asked the City Council for an internal investigation to “clarify responsibilities”. It also requests a “detailed review” of overtime payments and even suggests that the money that has been improperly received should be refunded. Finally, it proposes that an “accountability” assessment be made before the Court of Auditors.
Andalusian Anti-Fraud Office’s Role
The Andalusian Anti-Fraud Office is an agency attached to the Parliament of Andalusia, which received a complaint from the CGT union. Interestingly, it is the City Council itself, the alleged offender, that is being asked to investigate whether there was any irregularity. However, it is clear that more overtime hours have been paid than there are in a day, as one worker was charged 721 in a month, when if they had worked non-stop every day it would be 720.
Excessive Overtime Hours
The news published by “elDiario.es” states that the Anti-Fraud Office confirms that the overtime hours “practically double the maximum working day legally established”. “It is physically impossible for a full-time worker to perform another full working day in the same period of time,” the resolution accessed by this medium points out.
Constant Complaints from Public Employees Union
This issue has been constantly reported by the Malaga Public Employees Union (SEPMA) to the Labor Inspectorate. According to data published by Marbella24horas, hundreds of thousands of overtime hours were performed from 2019 to 2021. Just in December 2020, 15,000 hours were performed for an amount of 407,000 euros. In January 2021, 22,000 hours were performed for an amount of 586,914.36 euros. From February to July, this amount increased by another 359,000 euros. As a paradigmatic case, the union explained that a cleaning employee performed 2,626 overtime hours in 2019; in 2020 it was 1,972, “receiving astronomical amounts”. There have been two penalties, in 2021 and 2022, by the Labor Inspectorate as reported by the SEPMA.
