Czech Labour and Social Affairs Minister Marian Jurecka (KDU-CSL) will propose to raise public sector employee salaries by 7-10% from September at tomorrow’s meeting of the Tripartite Council, he told Czech TV’s ‘Questions from Vaclav Moravec’ yesterday.
The Tripartite Council brings together representatives of the government, trade unions and employers.
The pay rise would apply to the “first group”, which includes clerks, cultural workers, technical workers and non-teaching staff in the education and civil service spheres, said Jurecka.
The government coalition will be seeking the final agreement after 1 July, based on the state budget, Jurecka said.
The Finance Ministry said his proposal would cost around CZK 5 billion.
According to earlier information, the trade unions insist on a 15% increase in pay from September. Some 846,300 people work for the state and public sector, according to data from the Labour and Social Affairs Ministry.
Public sector salaries are set by five pay scales according to professional qualification and length of experience. The first is for clerks, cultural workers, technical workers and non-teaching staff in the education sector. The second is for social services, the third for healthcare personnel and nurses, the fourth for doctors and dentists, and the fifth for teachers. Civil servants and security forces employees have their own pay scale.
Jurecka said he would like to address public employees’ salaries in the second, third and fourth groups individually.
