Cvijanović and Amidžić proposed payment of 1,000 KM to employees in BiH institutions, SIPA Union calls for Budget adoption

(Patria) - The adoption of the Budget for BiH institutions and international obligations for 2025 is still a long way off, and due to the amendment phase, everything could drag on until the second half of November, and a new budget for 2026 already needs to be sent into procedure. The fate of the proposed budget, which is to be considered at the session of the House of Representatives of the BiH Parliament on October 30, is also questionable.

At today's meeting, member of the BiH Presidency Željka Cvijanović and Minister of Finance and Treasury Srđan Amidžić discussed the budget, as well as one-time assistance to employees in BiH institutions.

Cvijanović and Amidžić agreed today on the proposal to pay a one-time benefit of 1,000 KM to all employees.

"The Minister said that there are financial possibilities, which is to provide one-time assistance amounting to 1,000 KM to all employees for this period during which they have been harmed due to the absence of a budget. For this, we need to see how other partners think. The question remains what to do with the budget and what technique we will apply to reach a budget that is acceptable. Our people in the Council of Ministers are willing to work on this and to reach a budget," said Cvijanović.

Patria also sought a reaction from the SIPA Union, given that unions had previously filed criminal charges for not adopting the budget, and also requested the payment of assistance, threatening protests and strikes otherwise.

"The Union of the State Investigation and Protection Agency welcomes today's announcement by the member of the BiH Presidency, Ms. Željka Cvijanović, regarding the possibility of paying a one-time monetary benefit to employees in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as partial compensation for the lack of salary increases. Although the unions previously requested one-time assistance in the amount of 2,000 KM, the proposal of 1,000 KM represents a step forward in resolving the problem, but also shows that there is still room for further discussion and agreement.

We from the SIPA Union remind that the Budget for 2025 has not yet been adopted, while the Budget for 2026 has not even been prepared, and we expect all competent authorities, from the Council of Ministers, the Presidency, to the Parliamentary Assembly, to urgently complete the budget adoption procedure, for both 2025 and 2026, and thus ensure regular and legally prescribed salaries for employees. Employees in BiH institutions deserve stability, security, and fair treatment for their work," stated the president of the SIPA Union, Edin Kahrimanović.

The one-time benefit of 1,000 KM would not apply to officials receiving high salaries.