By Isha Sesay • Published: 07 Jan 2020 • 14:32
A National Police officer has been granted a 99% reduction in his working hours. Credit: TSJM
Spain’s Superior Court of Justice in Madrid has made a landmark decision, provisionally granting an officer from the National Police a 99% reduction in their working hours.
The case was seen as an exceptional circumstance, since the officer has a seriously ill four-month-old son who is suffering from an aggressive form of cancer.
The officer had asked for time off from the General Directorate of the Police three days after his son born, a time when the baby was diagnosed with the disease and had to undergo several rounds of chemotherapy.
However, the officer was only granted a 50% reduction in his hours and although grateful, he believed he needed to provide his son with round-the-clock support at such a critical time in his life, in addition to taking care of his three-year-old daughter.
For this reason, on the advice of the Union of the National Police (JUPOL), he took the case to the Spanish Superior Court due to his “complicated family situation”, as explained by the JUPOL in a statement.
After consideration, the Superior Court of Justice in Madrid granted the officer the landmark reduction today (January 7). As Euro Weekly News understands, they stated that they had reconsidered the guidelines laid out in the Basic Statute of Public Employees, which guarantees that a 50% reduction can be granted to officers with young children suffering from a serious illness. Instead, the man was given a 99% reduction in his hours at full pay in the judicial order, a decision they deemed appropriate until the child’s circumstances change.
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