The consultation refers to the enjoyment of the summer day established in section 7.1 of the Resolution of February 28, 2019, of the Secretary of State for the Civil Service, which dictates instructions on working hours and hours of the staff in the service of the General Administration of the State and its public bodies. In particular, a report is requested on whether both parents can enjoy this day from 1 January and until 30 September, when both provide services in the same administrative unit.

In addition, a report is requested as to whether coexistence with the minor or joint custody is to be accredited in the event of separation or divorce.

Article 47 of the consolidated text of the Law on the Basic Status of Public Employees, approved by Royal Legislative Decree 5/2015, of 30 October, provides that: “The Public Administrations will establish the general working hours and special working hours of their public officials. The working day may be full-time or part-time.”

On the other hand, paragraph 7.1 of the Resolution of 28 February 2019, regulating the intensive summer day, establishes the following:

“7.1 During the period from 16 June to 15 September, inclusive, an intensive working day may be established, at the rate of six and a half hours of continuous work, to be carried out between 8:00 and 15:00 hours, from Monday to Friday. In the case of employees who work only in the afternoon, they must perform six and a half hours of continuous work, between 14:30 and 21:30 hours, from Monday to Friday.

For reasons of reconciliation of family and working life, public employees with descendants or persons subject to guardianship or care up to 12 years of age, provided that they live with the applicant and are dependent on him, under his care, may take advantage of this type of intensive working day from 1 June to 30 September. This right may also be exercised in the year in which the minor reaches the age of 12 years. (…)”.

For its part, paragraph 2.4.e) of the Resolution states that the working calendar must respect, in any case, the adaptation of the schedule to the needs of the service and the functions of the center.

In other words, paragraph 7.1 of that resolution provides, on the one hand, for the possibility of establishing a summer day, from 16 June to 15 September; and, on the other, for the right of public employees included in the scope of the resolution to be eligible for the summer day, for reasons of reconciliation of personal, family and working life, from 1 June to 30 September.

In addition, this working day must be provided in the corresponding working calendar, which, as indicated, must respect, in any case, the needs of the service and the functions of the center.

Both the summer day and the extension of the day that occurs for reasons of reconciliation of personal, family and working life for those who have children up to twelve years of age, is an individual right of each of the parents in their status as such, without any limitation having been established in that regard.

In other words, the adjustment of the working day for reasons of reconciliation of personal, working and family life is provided for as an individual right of each official and, therefore, even if both parents provide services in the same unit, it would not be possible to limit that right for this reason.

A different question would be whether the needs of the service were properly documented. However, it must be taken into account that, as long as the “extended” summer day for conciliation reasons is configured as a right by the Resolution itself, the necessary measures must be taken in each unit so that public employees can enjoy that right and only the same is limited, on an exceptional basis, by duly accredited service needs.

Finally, with regard to the question of whether coexistence with the minor or joint custody is to be required in the event of separation or divorce, it must be understood, in the light of the provisions of paragraph 7.1, second paragraph, of the aforementioned Resolution, that it must be established that there are grounds for conciliation in order to qualify for that day; therefore, the management centre may request the documentation to prove such extreme in each case.

All of the above is without prejudice to remember that, according to the regime of competences of this management center, the answers to queries issued by this general directorate are merely informative and, consequently, do not have the character of a binding criterion, nor do they give rise to rights or expectations of law, nor do they imply any link with the type of procedures to which they refer. In addition, since they are not mandatory or binding, the bodies to which such replies are addressed may, where appropriate, finally take a decision that does not correspond to the opinion contained therein.

The answers to queries contained in this bulletin deal with the issues raised in the light of the regulations in force at the time of their issuance, so that these answers may be affected by subsequent legislative changes or judicial resolutions.