[EXCLUSIVE] Turmoil in HUP: Candidates for New Leadership Fabris Peruško and Martina Dalić!

It sounds like the script of a mediocre political thriller, but this is the reality in the Croatian Employers’ Association, which is experiencing perhaps its most exciting election year since its inception. Although there are no official candidacies yet for the position of president to replace the current president Gordana Deranja, several names have emerged in the last two weeks. A Nomination Committee has been formed to receive candidacies for the president position and to verify whether candidates meet the basic criteria of the Statute, as well as some ‘soft’ criteria.

In the Nomination Committee appointed by the Council of Members are Damir Zorić (Euroherc), Ivan Ergović (Nexe Group), Ivan Mišetić (Atlantic Group), Ivica Mudrinić (Fortenova Group), and Ana Fresl (PJR Consulting). As we unofficially learned from several sources close to the electoral process, it is Ivica Mudrinić who is ‘pushing’ Fabris Peruško, a member of the Management Board of Fortenova Group, as the best candidate, even though he sits on the same Board as a representative of the workers. The first question that arises is how Mudrinić, as a representative of the workers, found himself in that role? As a former president of HUP, he is automatically a member of the HUP Council, and thus the Council of Members, which consists of 60 members, elected him to that position.

Some of the criteria for the president, as we learn, are that he has actively participated in the work of HUP bodies for at least one year, that the company he represents has been a member of HUP for at least five years, that it pays membership fees, and that there are no issues with fulfilling obligations. In addition, candidates will need to submit some work program to the Nomination Committee. Active members of HUP bodies say that Peruško does not meet the first or second condition because he has not been engaged in the Association’s work until now and has only recently started attending meetings more frequently, presenting some information about Fortenova. Fortenova has been a member of HUP since May of this year. Therefore, as we learn, Mudrinić is lobbying to have the first two criteria removed. Peruško’s candidacy could cause significant divisions within the Council of Members, given that Fortenova represents Russian interests in Croatia, and also due to the fact that there are many more active members than Peruško.

The biggest opponent of such a decision is Ivan Ergović, who vigorously opposes many current events in HUP that are contrary to the Association’s Statute.

– I do not personally know Peruško; he might be a good candidate, but according to the nomination criteria, he does not meet two basic conditions. Regarding Ivica Mudrinić, we sent a letter to the Council of Members yesterday stating that, also according to the Statute, he actually should not be in any body of HUP as a representative of the workers, including the Nomination Committee. The letter requests that the Council elect a new member of the Nomination Committee – explains Ergović.

Although some members say that Ergović wants to see Zoran Škorić, the CEO of Osijek Koteksa, as president, he distances himself from that claim.

– I see a younger, capable person with charisma and good managerial skills in the presidential role, and what her name will be is not important to me; I have no favorite. Škorić was nominated by the Association of Employers in Construction, which gathers renowned construction companies. I know him personally and think he is a good candidate, but there are others who are capable of leading the Association. The goal is to elect a president who will transparently represent HUP, who does not have someone behind him pushing personal interests, who will connect branch associations and will not only represent the interests of large companies – emphasized Ergović.

However, what has resonated among the members is allegedly Ergović’s favorite for the new director of HUP, which is Martina Dalić, the former Minister of Economy who left the Government due to the Borg affair, that is, Agrokor, that is, Fortenova. It would indeed be interesting to see Fabris Peruško and Martina Dalić going to a meeting in the Government as spokespersons for the Croatian entrepreneurial scene. We called Dalić, who has been without a real engagement for some time for a comment, but she was unavailable. Ergović says that her name was mentioned in some casual conversation in the context of a good and capable candidate, but that there has not yet been any discussion with her about it.

On the list of other potential candidates are also Renato Radić, the owner of Prima furniture, Marin Pucar, the CEO of Podravka, and Boris Drilo, a member of the Management Board of Hrvatski Telekom.

Pucar is considered a good manager, but given that the state is a key shareholder of the company he leads, it is hard to imagine him opposing the Minister of Economy one day. The greatest advantage, the most transparent and cleanest story behind him is Boris Drilo, who might accept that position, but under completely different, simpler organizational and much more transparent working conditions of the Association. His only mentioned drawback is that he is in the management of a German company and that he is associated with Davor Majetić, who until recently sat on the Supervisory Board of HT, and whom part of the HUP membership no longer wants to see in a director position.

Drilo is the main candidate of the two loudest associations, the branch IT Association, and has the support of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, which has also recently elected a new president, Igor Škrgatić. The Association of Small and Medium Enterprises is also the largest association; however, it has many more votes in the Assembly than in the Council of Members that elects the president.

It is increasingly heard within HUP that the presidential function is actually outdated and that entrepreneurs in Croatia should be represented by a think tank of experts who have knowledge and influence. This Association has long been characterized by lethargy, and no members have been particularly engaged in the meaning and work of HUP, but the situation is now completely different, especially since it has received competition in the new Association Voice of Entrepreneurs.

Thus, information about the salaries of about 40 HUP employees, including the director’s salary, has also surfaced, which our interlocutor said is 'twice as good to be the director of HUP than the Prime Minister'. It is said that employee costs in HUP amount to 21 million kuna in a year, which is almost three times more than in a company that employs 40 people with average Zagreb salaries. Ergović did not confirm that amount but said it is not normal for the director of HUP to drive a better car than most members of the Association who lead the largest companies in Croatia.

He says that the average gross salary in HUP is 20 thousand kuna and that millions are spent on consulting services outside the legal department that exists within HUP. He also pointed out that the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, due to the coronavirus pandemic, accommodated its members in paying membership fees, especially smaller companies, while HUP has done nothing in that regard. We sent an inquiry to HUP to verify the information presented, and they told us – „HUP has about 40 employees, and according to internal acts, data on salaries and other individual earnings of workers is a business secret.“

– This Association needs to undergo redistribution. We will reset it, halve the budget, and become an example to everyone of how to behave in these crisis times. Above all, we need to prepare well for the autumn when we can expect a very difficult economic period – concluded Ergović.

Due to all the aforementioned problems and interests, it is not surprising that this entire situation has caused anger among many members, especially smaller entrepreneurs, and that many want changes. Some advocate that these changes happen by mid-July, while others want to wait until autumn.

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