Compensation for insular disadvantages is already a reality in Corsica, the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands, where civil servants are granted a "residence allowance" on the islands, which varies according to function and role, and for the mere fact of living far away from the continent. It is called «indemnité de résidence» in the first case, «indemnización por residencia» in the other two, but the concept is identical.
"Depending on the roles covered in the public administration, there are different allowances", explains Isabel Vera, born in the Canary Islands and for 25 years in Sardinia, where with her association Eurinsula she is involved in projects to create a network between European island territories. «Partly thanks to these measures, which compensate for the disadvantages of living on an island, the population has increased over the years. Sardinia, on the other hand, follows the reverse trend».
From the Balearic Islands to the Canary Islands, the Spanish state grants civil servants an additional allowance that varies according to their employment. A first-level official receives a salary of around 200 euros more per month. A very similar measure has been in force since 1985 in Corsica, where magistrates, soldiers, teachers and all civil servants residing on the French island are entitled to an additional allowance equal to 3% of the basic salary.
The same categories of workers are granted an allowance for transport costs, which varies from 1,076 to 1,206 euros per year depending on the composition of the family nucleus. In Spain there is no fixed contribution to be added to salaries, but all citizens residing in the islands are entitled to a 75% discount on air and boat tickets for any national destination.
"And the funding is guaranteed by the central state," recalls Isabel Vera. In short: in the other island regions of Europe there are already compensation systems for island disadvantages, and they go directly to the inhabitants. Of course, the residence allowance is granted only to civil servants, but in Corsica the debate has been open for some time on the possible extension of the allowances linked to residence also to some categories of workers in the private sector.
Michael Ruffi
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