Manilva’s financial woes continue to create a headache for the current administration, who are now having to deal with a revolt by council workers over late payment of wages.

This all came to a head on Friday, 12th September, when a demonstration was held outside the Duquesa Hotel and Golf Club before the final of the Miss and Mister Malaga pageant, which the demonstrators, comprising council workers, UGT, and opposition party members, who knew that the mayoress and her councillors would be attending.

Those gathered were protesting about the fact that their August wage payment hadn’t been paid until the 12th September, after a last minute bail out by the Patronato in Malaga who advanced them the 700,000 euros needed to pay the bill. This was after the refusal, earlier in the week, of an extension bank loan to cover this shortfall.

Although they have been paid for August, the employees and the union are concerned that there will not be sufficient funds to honour the September payment, given the disparity between revenue and outgoings.

The Town council have assured that there will be sufficient funds to honour payments over the coming months and are in continued talks with the employees union, to try and solve the basic cause of the problem that being the massive overstaffing, with some 560 council employees serving a population of just approximately 12.5 thousand registered on the padron, almost twice the figure recommended in government guidelines. Although the union recognise the need for this number to be reduced, they refuse to enter into negotiations whilst the current administration continues to take on more staff.

The union has continued their protests with a daily programme of demonstrations outside of council premises in the municipality and it is envisaged that local opposition parties and the UGT union will be organising further action over the coming weeks.