In the wake of the SVIZ labor union’s announcement of a February 14 strike, fifteen other public-sector unions that make up the negotiating team led by Jakob Počivavšek have announced their intention to strike. The strike will take place on January 24.
The group led by Počivavšek includes 28 unions, and about a half of them have announced their plans to strike. The whole-day warning strike is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, January 24. If the unions and the government fail to come closer together, the strike will continue in early February. A protest march will take place in Ljubljana on the day of the strike.
The protest march will highlight the unions’ demands. If nothing changes until then, the unions plan to step up their actions. Another strike would follow in the first week of February, says Počivavšek. The unions that have decided to take part in the strike represent a wide range of public-sector employees, Počivavšek explains.
Three strike demands
The unions demand that the irregularities in public sector pay ratings are immediately abolished. For job positions above the 26th pay grade, the union demands an increase of three to four pay grades, while those below the 26th pay grade, the unions want and increase of two pay grades.
The second demand is for the gradual abolition of austerity measures, which had been introduced by emergency legislation, beginning in January 3. The third demand calls for employers to be given funds to offset increased costs of labor.
