Primorac: Agreement with Judicial Unions Costs the State 13 Million Euros

Finance Minister Marko Primorac stated on Thursday that the agreement with the unions in the judiciary will cost the state budget around 13 million euros, and assessed that discretionary decisions to increase salaries for one sector undermine the entire concept of salary system reform.

He also emphasized that for everyone covered by these discretionary decisions, salaries from January 1 will certainly not increase as much as they would have without these changes.

Regarding the agreement between the state and the judiciary unions, he said that its fiscal impact on the budget is around 13 million euros.

When asked to comment on the fact that the police union is now seeking the same raise, and whether there is money in the budget for them as well, he said that the state is faced with increased expenditures from several bases.

– The expenditures you mention are certainly significant and any further increase would not be good – he said, adding that the government is also facing the consequences of stormy weather.

According to him, the budget is not threatened by the agreement with the judicial unions.

– There will be money for pensions, for salaries, no one needs to worry, the stability of public finances is not threatened, but we cannot increase these expenditures selectively, without measure – said the finance minister.

When asked if he is frightened by the announcement of new strikes, he said that the government is aware that salaries in the public sector are low. The salary difference between the private and public sectors, he emphasized, has increased in favor of salaries in the private sector, making it difficult to motivate people to come work in the public sector.

– However, we have precisely because of this and because the current existing salary system, in our opinion, has been inadequate, approached the development of a new legal solution and the adoption of two regulations that will solve the salary problem in the state and public service. We have committed to this in the program, and through the NPOO, and we have committed to do this by the end of the year. The entire package must come into effect from January 1 – said Primorac.

Primorac also stated that the government has committed that the regulation of this system will not lead to salary reductions, but rather the opposite.

– However, what is happening now is something that is not good, not because it will significantly threaten the budget but because the entire job of regulating this system is now being called into question – he noted, adding that to regulate the system, there needs to be a comparable measure, and if discretionary decisions are made for one sector every now and then, it undermines the entire concept.

All these changes, he emphasizes, signify premature payment of increased salaries for certain categories. Ultimately, according to him, this means that for everyone currently covered by discretionary decisions, salaries from January 1 will certainly not increase as much as they would have without these changes.

He said that this was explained to the unions during negotiations, that the current increase will not be the starting position for a new increase from January 1.

He also emphasized that salary system reforms in other countries take years, averaging three to five years, while in Croatia this has been reduced to the shortest possible frameworks.