Private detectives to monitor municipal workers on sick leave in Fuengirola

Private detectives can investigate infidelities, collect evidence of crimes or ensure the security at major events, but if they are in Fuengirola, they can also be investigating public employees. The local town hall has put out to tender a contract titled 'Hiring of detectives to monitor municipal workers'. It is a one-year contract, worth 18,148.79 euros (14,999 plus IVA), and detectives had until Monday, 11 August, to submit their bids. The town hall's aim is to investigate the "high absenteeism" detected among civil servants.

The contract provides answers to all possible questions: who is investigated, who chooses who is to be investigated, by what criteria and in what way.

The municipal employees who might be investigated by private detectives are those who are "in a situation of temporary incapacity or with a report of aptitude with limitations". This will be determined by the human resources department of the town hall. The minimum number of employees to be investigated is ten. However, the tender stipulates that companies can offer a higher number. This improvement accounts for up to 40% of the award criteria, while the remaining 60% corresponds to the price.

Regarding the specific tasks that the detectives will have to carry out, the specifications state: "The provider must carry out a preliminary investigation of the person monitored, consisting of corroborating the data provided by the town hall, as well as checking the existence of other addresses, telephone numbers, places of work, incidents that may appear on official websites and social media and that may provide more information to the investigation." This prior analysis must be included in the final report.

In addition to the initial investigation, there will be a thorough follow-up aimed at clearly proving that the employee is carrying out their usual job or another type of work. Assumptions without a direct link to the facts being investigated will not be enough. The same type of follow-up will be applied if the aim is to prove that the worker is performing activities incompatible with their temporary incapacity or limitations. In principle, these investigative tasks will last a minimum of three days unless human resources decides to shorten or extend them.

According to Fuengirola town hall, the rate of absenteeism among municipal public workers is 10%, compared to the 7% national average. The highest incidences occur within the fields of operational services (public maintenance tasks) and cleaning services (privately managed but carried out by municipal workers).

In addition to the detective contract, the town hall has also "requested reports from the labour insurance company and the health surveillance service in order to go deeper into measures to improve the health of workers".

According to municipal sources, the aim of these actions is not to question medical leave. In addition, they reminded the public that municipal workers, unlike employees in private companies, receive 100% of their salaries during a medical leave and that the goal is to "ensure that public money is not misused". Finally, Fuengirola town hall stated that it is not the first municipal administration to issue such a contract.