Transparency & Corruption, Low pay/minimum wages, Pay settlements, Global, Croatia, Armenia

On 13 March, the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) governing body endorsed an agreement on living wages. This acknowledges that decent wages are central to economic and social development and to advance social justice. The document also says that living wages play an essential role in reducing poverty and inequality and ensuring a decent and dignified life. For the ILO, a living wage is the wage level necessary to afford a decent standard of living for workers and their families, taking into account the country circumstances and calculated for the work performed during the normal hours

After lengthy negotiations a new public sector pay structure is in place that means significant increases to the coefficients used to calculate salaries for different occupations. Overall public sector workers are set to benefit on average by 13.5% in comparison to pay levels in 2023. Most unions are generally happy with the new system, including the HSSMS-MT nurses’ and health workers’ union which is one of 11 to sign the public sector collective agreement. However, other unions, including teaching unions, are unhappy with the outcome and argue that the new system fails to deliver appropriate

The HSSMS-MT healthcare union reports that following the third round of public sector pay negotiations, unions have accepted a pay increase of 5%, an improvement on the 3% offer made in the second round of bargaining. The unions have also secured the €300 Christmas bonus that they were looking for and an Easter bonus of €100, less than they wanted but a €30 improvement on the previous offer. There is also a commitment that, should the new pay system not be in place by 1 March 2024, then negotiations would open for a general pay increase.

The strike of members of the SDSLN trade union in the Ministry of Justice is over following a close vote to accept the government’s offer of a 12% pay increase. Although below the €400 increase aimed for, the union argues that this is a reasonable increase and goes some way to recognising that workers in the ministry had been undervalued. The SDLSN also notes that it was a significant achievement to maintain the strike and to affirm its legality in the face of legal challenges by the government. The agreement with the government also confirms that the union will be involved in the negotiations

Following the threat of protests and other actions, public sector unions, including the SDLSN state sector union and HSSMS-MT nurses’ union, have secured increases to pay and other benefits. The base for setting public sector salaries will increase by 6% from 1 October this year and then by 2% from 1 April 2023. There will also be increases to the Christmas bonus, the payment of gifts to children and to holiday allowances. Negotiations for the next round of increases will take place next year at the latest in the third week of September.

On 26 April, at the 14th session of negotiations between public service unions, including the HSSMS-MT nurses’ union and SDLSN public administration union, and the government, it was confirmed that the general public sector pay increase will be 4% backdated to 1 April. This is a positive outcome for the trade unions as the government had been pushing for a 2% rise from 1 May and then a further 2% later in the year. The meeting was joined by six ministers along with the prime minister. The unions also secured a commitment to further negotiations on pay in September and an increase in the

The ITUC global trade union confederation has noted the significance of the recent award of the Nobel prize for economics to David Card, Joshua Angrist and Guido Imbens. Their key research in the 1990s demonstrated that higher minimum wages do not mean fewer jobs, providing a powerful counter-argument to the often heard claims of employers and many governments about the negative effects of minimum wages. The ITUC argues that this prize is a serious indictment of many economists in that it has taken some 30 years for the facts to be given prominence over a damaging and groundless idea. It added

Public sector workers will get a 4% pay rise in January 2021 along with a HRK 1500 (EUR 200) Christmas bonus. This was confirmed in negotiations in November and reflects a success for the trade unions in the face of an attempt by the government back in the summer to freeze public sector pay. SDLSN (HR)

After four rounds of negotiations it was agreed that two pay rises of 2% foreseen for this year would be postponed and paid in January 2021. The existing collective agreement provided for the pay increases along with increases in other allowances and the Christmas bonus and the government had initially wanted to freeze all pay and allowances. However, the postponement was agreed and other allowances will be increased while the Christmas bonus will be negotiated later in the year.

The SDLSN trade union reports that wages for state workers have been increased by 3% from 1 January 2019 and a further increase of 2% will follow on 1 November 2019. The union also agreed with the government that negotiations over a range of rights and also increases on wages for next year would be undertaken during April and May this year.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has produced a new report arguing for a doubling of investment in the care sector to prevent a global care crisis. It says that investment on this scale could create 269 million new jobs by 2030 and provide a major boost to women's employment while addressing massive gender inequality in unpaid care. The ILO estimates that over 600 million women want paid employment but are prevented from entering the labour market because of their caring responsibilities. The report underlines the need for a "high road" to increase care provision which means

On 12 May healthworkers in Sofia and Zagreb demonstrated over poor pay and working conditions and the crisis of understaffing. 5000 nurses, medical professionals, midwives and lab technicians joined a demonstration outside the Council of Ministers in Sofia demanding a 1500 Lev (EUR 765) minimum wage for health workers as a step towards stemming the flow of health workers out of the country. In Zagreb the call was also for improved pay and working conditions and in particular the respect for collective agreements in relation to overtime pay.