COVID-19, Social Dialogue, Czech Republic

EPSU affiliates and other trade unions in the CMKOS confederation are on strike alert in response to a range of government proposals to consolidate public finances that pose a threat to public employees but also to tax allowances and other benefits for all workers. A potential 2% cut in staff costs in the public sector could have major consequences for pay and jobs with inflation reaching 30% over two years and so far no pay rise for public service workers this year. Public sector unions, including OSSOO and OSZSP, have expressed concern over the failure of the government to engage in social

The OSZSP health and social care union has revealed widespread problems with the COVID bonuses that should have been paid to staff across health and social care. The union managed to negotiate a range of different additional payments for hospital workers, paramedics, social care staff and other workers in these sectors. For example, healthcare professionals in hospitals can get up to CZK 25000 (EUR 975) a month (maximum CZK 75000, EUR 2920) and other hospital workers up to CZK 10000 (EUR 390) a month (maximum CZK 30000, EUR 1170). However, OSZSP says that workers have rarely got the higher

Following negotiations with the government, the OSZSP health union has won payments of up to CSK 120000 (€4650) for emergency medical staff. These workers weren’t covered by special payment negotiated for other groups of health staff, but the union pointed out that ambulance workers have faced massively increased workloads, with callouts increasing by more than a third, and in many cases the same level and type of work carried out by intensive care staff in hospitals.

The OSZSP health workers’ union and LOK doctors’ union have written a joint letter to the prime minister warning of the continuing crisis in healthcare, particularly in some regional hospitals. The unions say that services are at bursting point in some hospitals not just with the high-level of patients with COVID-19 but also with patients with longer-term symptoms. The unions have also called for additional funding to ensure that all health workers entitled to a COVID-19 bonus get their payments without delay and to avoid a repeat of the problems of payments during the first outbreak. They

The OSZSP health union and doctors' union have called on the minister of health to ensure that bonus payments for working with COVID-19 patients are paid to all relevant staff across the health and social care sectors. The payments were agreed and confirmed by the minister of labour but the health minister has only contacted directly-managed teaching hospitals and a small number of other facilities to pay the allowance which ranges from 100 (3,70 EUR) to 500 (18,50 EUR) and up to 1500 CZK (EUR 55,30) an hour. The unions underline that all staff on the frontline should benefit whether

The OSZSP health union took part in a tripartite meeting with the health minister and health employers last month with pay and staffing high on the agenda. The union is still seeking confirmation from the government that the 10% pay increase offered to health workers will be implemented from 1 January and that it will apply to all health workers. It warns that problems with the health service will arise if workers in some areas don't benefit from the same pay increase. The union has called for data on hospitals, patient numbers, staffing and average pay along with information on overtime hours