Thirteen police unions and civil guard associations have announced they will attend a mass in large numbers and in uniform at Madrid's Almudena Cathedral on May 9 to pressure Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska to reopen talks on salary equalization and dignified retirement.
A group of 13 unions and associations, part of the Platform for Dignified Retirement and Salary Equalization—such as the Unified Police Union (SUP), Professional Police Union (SPP), Unified Association of Civil Guards (AUGC), Officers' Union (UO), and Federal Police Union (UFP)—has called for the mass on May 9 at 12:00 in Madrid's Almudena Cathedral. The aims include honoring colleagues killed in the line of duty, entrusting themselves to the Virgin of Almudena for recognition as a high-risk profession, and pressuring to reopen the 2018 agreement's monitoring table on salary parity with regional police and retirement improvements, where they lose up to 30% of pay upon early retirement without full purchasing power. They will wear uniforms without regulation weapons, risking disciplinary sanctions as uniforms are banned in protests, though they stress it is not a protest: no banners or slogans. They expect 4,000 to 5,000 officers, chartering buses nationwide, without prior notice to the cathedral. AUGC Secretary General Juan Fernández stated: “Dialogue is not happening; it's a shame. This situation must change.” They will cancel if Marlaska summons them beforehand. SUP Secretary General Carlos Prieto stressed: “It is not a protest; it is a solemn act” and “No citizen understands why we are not a high-risk profession.” At the press conference, wearing platform polo shirts over uniforms, they were joined by leaders from Mossos d'Esquadra and Ertzaintza, which have high-risk status. They referenced precedents like tributes to civil guards killed in Barbate in February 2024, and recalled the 2007 Plaza Mayor protest that led to sanctions.
