Trade Unions will stage protest against government’s refusal to increase salaries in budgetary sector

The Confederation of Trade Unions of Moldova (CTUM) will organise a one-day strike on February 22, in the square of the National Opera, to ask wage increases for budgetary employees. According to a press release from CTUM, the protestors request to implement the Law on wage system in the budgetary sector, to increase the minimum salary to the minimum subsistence level, implement the Education Law according to which the minimum salary of the teaching staff shouldn’t be lower than the average salary in national economy, to immediately approve the Law on teaching staff status, liquidate salary debts in financial autonomy enterprises and of the public servants. In the CTUM Executive Committee’s Appeal to trade union organisations, trade union members, representatives of civil society in Moldova, it is said that the Law on wage system in the budgetary sector, which stipulated, as from 1 January 2007, the increase of budgetary salary, has been passed in December 2005 after repeated insistences of the trade unionists. However, financial allocations for wage hikes according to this law have been anticipated neither in the State Budget nor in the local budgets for 2007, while on December 28 Parliament passed another law due to which it stopped implementing the law, citing the lack of available funds, without consulting the social partners, the Appeal says. “Moldova Noastra” Alliance supports the protest action initiated by CTUM. Its leader Serafim Urecheanu recently stated that AMN will take part in the protest staged by CTUM, as “the situation in the country became intolerable, while the communist government have robbed the budgetary employees of about one billion lei”. Another two extra parliamentary political parties stated will also participate in the protest to defend the rights of the employees from budgetary sector. The Conservator Party of Moldova is concerned about the situation of the employees in education. Concurrently, the Social Democrat Party of Moldova (PSDM) shows the disagreement about the violation by the present government of the legislation as regards the salary increase of the workers in the budgetary sector. “We take the argument alleged by the government that there are no money in the budget as an absolutely groundless justification and it does not comply with the statements about the social orientation of the budget. The unjustified expenses totalling about 200 mln lei for the reconstruction of “Eternity” Memorial, Pan Halippa Street, Monument to Stefan cel Mare, square of the Opera House, renovation of viaduct Botanica-Centru, buildings of Court of Appeals and Supreme Court of Justice, could have ensured the increase in salaries of the teachers for 2007”, PSDM’s statement says. Chisinau City Hall has authorised the organisation of the protest staged by CTUM on February 22, in the square of National Opera, at 11.00 am. Nowadays, the salary of an educator in kindergartens who has an experience of over 20 years is of 741 lei, a teacher in the school receives 977 lei, an university lecturer is paid 720 lei. About 40% of the employees in the budgetary sector who are working as auxiliary workers are paid 320–336 lei per month.