The new birth permit would make a 'broken' to the state of 1,400 million the new birth permit would make a 'broken' to the state of 1.4 billion
Expanding birth permissions from current 16 weeks to 6 months will involve additional cost for public coffers of about 1.400 million euros, which will also have to endure the State, because these benefits are included in the annual transfer of the General Social Security Budgets, so Minister José Luis Escrivá has classified as "improper expenses".According to calculations prepared from the available budget information, if the measure that is being negotiated within the Government at the proposal of Unidos can be carried out in the face of the PGE of 2022, the expense in benefits of maternity and paternity would climb to the 4.200 million euros, from 2.800 million 2021.
Since January 1, 2021, paternity and maternity permits (now unified under birth benefit) are 16 weeks for each parent.The culmination of a gradual expansion that still does not be sufficient."Our country has a pending account with families with newborn babies," admitted the Minister of Social Rights, Ione Belarra on Wednesday, which advanced its intention to promote, together with the Ministry of Equality, the increase in permits to 6Months within the framework of the new family diversity law, which is expected to arrive at the Council of Ministers around the summer, in time to incorporate a game for the eventual measure in the 2022 budgets.
The cost of expanding permits from 16 to 24 weeks - or what is the same, from 4 to 6 months - would reach 1.400 million euros.For this year, the budgets contemplate a item of about 2.800 million euros (2.784.7 million, specifically), which would be increased by practically 50% in the PGE of 2022, until touching the 4.200 million, provided that the extension was done once, without a transitory period.All this, making an approximation based on the available budget information and, therefore, assuming that government projections remain stable in regard to the evolution of births between the collective of workers and the amount of benefits.From Social Security, department responsible for the management and fertilizer of these permits, avoid as much as assess and project the eventual expense.
In any case, money will not leave the pension system, but from the state.In compliance with the recommendations of the Toledo Pact, to consolidate the separation of sources of financing and restore the financial balance of the system, Minister Escrivá has selected a series of expenses that are improper to social security because they have nothing to do with the charactercontributory, such as health benefits, employment incentive policies through quota reductions, families support policies or operating expenses.In total, about 23.000 million euros, as the fiscal authority has quantified, including about 3.000 million of the benefit by birth and care of children.
But the transfer of the invoice of these benefits from the Social Security to the State has been questioned by other institutions such as Funcas, that in its assessment of the 2021 Social Security budget he pointed out that "it is debatable to qualify as 'improper' all the concepts thatThe Government considers as such, as it happens for example with the contributory benefit by birth and care of children or with the operating expenses that, in pure logic of insurance, should support the insured/beneficiaries of the system and not the whole of the citizens ".In addition, "load this type of costs on the state budget (...) It is evident that it does not solve the problem of financial insufficiency of the public sector as a whole, especially after the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the deficit and state debt, "they point out from the savings banks.
In any case, the Ministry of Escrivá is silent, for the moment, because the measure is born of social rights, ministry managed by Unidos Podemos, and must be negotiated with the PSOE partners."It will be a fundamental issue that must be discussed for the budgets of 2022 and has to dialogue within the government," Belarra said on Wednesday, after also progressing its intention to create a benefit by parenting with "universal character" so thatFamilies in vulnerability can receive help for each child in charge.It must be insisted that they are still in the process of negotiation within the government for the approval of both the Law of Family Diversity and the PGE, both provided for the beginning of the next political course.
Progressive increase in spending
The family diversity law promises to rise as another of the great social milestones of the coalition government.If the expansion of birth permit is included until six months, the progress would be considerable.The paternity permit in Spain did not exist until 2007 (before the parents only had two days of paid job permission), when it was set at 15 days, and was not extended to 4 weeks until 2017, to increase to 5 weeksIn 2018 and, as of 2019, to start its palatal path of increase to equalization with the maternity leave at 16 weeks.In parallel, the bill for public coffers has been fattening since 1.700 million euros supposed in 2016 (1.500 million for maternity permits and 200 million for paternity) to more than 1.900 million in 2018, about 2.200 in 2019, more than 2.500 in 2020 and almost 2.800 in 2021.
It remains to be seen if the measure will be negotiated at the social dialogue table with the employer and the unions, given that it directly affects labor relations and also involves an important cost for companies (they support around a fifthtotal invoice).In March 2019, when the gradual increase in permits was approved until both parents are equated in 16 weeks, the CEOE criticized the government for giving the measure to the measure of decree in one of its "social Fridays", without marginFor negotiation.The unions, meanwhile, regretted the transient periods of adaptation to the new standard.And within the Executive an intense debate was lived, precisely on account of the cost of the measure, which faced the then promoter Carmen Calvo with the economic area.Tense negotiations are predicted.
