Parliament has until April 1 to negotiate with workers after getting rid of full salary benefits for retired

The Catalan parliament has unanimously approved to get rid of the full salary benefits for retired employees. Officials will have until April 1 to negotiate with public workers what should happen next. 

The Institutional Affairs Committee confirmed on Thursday a proposal by the Parliament bureau from January 25. 

The move by the bureau was triggered one week after an Ara newspaper report revealed that around €1.7m were spent every year since 2008. Several former secretaries earned more than €10,000 per month, while those with lower salaries, such as attendants, received €3,800 per month — the equivalent of €56,000 to €150,000 gross per year.

Mid-January, the parliament bureau decided to reform the system involving such 'age licenses' through negotiation with workers, but later the body regulating the chamber went for a straight removal of the privileges and will only seek a new deal once the stripping of the norm is consolidated.

After the Ara report was made public, parliament speaker Laura Borràs told public broadcaster TV3 that the situation had been "solved" following a modification to the "age license" system in December that meant that those who applied for it would either carry on working fewer hours or stop working altogether and earn less money three years before finally fully retiring rather than five.