Outcry as Algarrobo mayor scraps wages for 3 women councillors

ALGARROBO’S mayor and leader of the local socialist PSOE party, Alberto Perez Gil, has decided that three women councillors will not be paid wages for the role. On the other hand, the rest of the councillors – all male – will continue to earn a salary for their work.
Opposing party Partido Popular (PP) has branded the mayor’s attitude as “sexist,” while he defended the move, arguing that the gender division in which councillors would be paid was “only a coincidence.”
In a plenary session held last week, the wages of the seven councillors were discussed. The town mayor and three male councillors, Jose Luis Ruiz, Manuel Navarta and Miguel Garcia, are working exclusively for the council and will receive their monthly salaries.
However, the female councillors, Maria Jose Ruiz, Clementina Camacho and Aida Maria Pendon, who also work in other roles beyond their duties as councillors, will receive no wages whatsoever for the position. It is also noteworthy that Ms Camacho is in charge of the town’s Women’s and Equality department.
“These women hold as many important responsibilities as their male counterparts and they should be earning wages,” said head of the PP, Natacha Rivas.
Mayor Perez explained to radio channel SER Malaga that the gender split was just a coincidence, and that the decision was based on the proposal that those who did not work exclusively for council should not earn anything for the role.
“It is not a sexist measure,” stressed the mayor who added that the reasons behind the situation were personal and should not be up for public discussion.