The ELA trade union has called for a process to consolidate the Osakidetza temporary staff and has denounced that the OPE announced on Thursday by the Health Advisor, Gotzone Sagardui, is not enough. The Basque Government has announced that in April or May it intends to carry out the examinations for the award of public places in the Basque Country. According to the union, the temporality rate will be perpetuated, as it is "very difficult" to get a fixed job in the Basque Country. In total, 3,535 places will be offered, although there are at least 24,600 temporary workers.

They have stressed that 9,000 casual workers have been on temporary contracts for at least eight years, of which 81 per cent are women, according to the Employment Department. ELA points out that the problem has been long-standing: “They have been developing public service in precarious conditions for many years.”

Irregularities in examinations

ELA has denounced Osakidetza's "lack of transparency and impartiality", recalling the issue of alleged fraud in the examinations that have been carried out so far. The union itself filed the complaint with the Public Prosecutor’s Office for the latest evidence and irregularities are being investigated by the courts, the union has reported. Sagardui, for its part, announced that the IVAP would carry out the tests to ensure their impartiality. However, as explained by ELA, Osakidetza announced "unexpectedly" that the tests will be conducted by "qualifying courts" instead of the IVAP. According to the union, it is a decision that has maintained "the selection system" and warned that test fraud is not isolated.