Unions in HNK: We will seek our rights on the street again

(Patria) - Unions of civil servants and employees, teachers, secondary and primary schools of HNK have once again called on the cantonal government and all involved in the decision-making process to understand the reality and engage in social dialogue in order to avoid undesirable situations and union activities.

"After numerous lawsuits and non-compliance with collective agreements, the new Government of HNK continues on the same path as those that allowed and led to people being denied their rights for fifteen or more years, for which they had to file lawsuits with competent courts, the payments for which they are still waiting for. Unfortunately, many have not even lived to see, nor will they see, the money they earned," they stated in a joint statement.

They believe that the Government persistently ignores the warnings of the unions, despite the unions' attempts to point out to the new members of the HNK Government the necessity of increasing the base salary, and thus the income of budget users, which in "these difficult times has been eroded by inflation and daily price increases, especially for food, which consumes most of the income of all budget users".

"As we know, the base salary fell below 50 percent of the average salary at the FBiH level as early as October 2023, which is a direct violation of the collective agreements for budget users, which stipulate that the base salary cannot be less than 50 percent, and can range from 50-70 percent. The mere fact that the base salary is below 50 percent speaks to the severity of the situation and the level of material income of budget users in the canton, which has the second-highest average salary among ten cantons, which suggests that we should be at the very top in terms of salaries and income. Unfortunately, we are at the very bottom," they explained.

In the end, they said that people will once again be forced to seek their rights in competent courts, on the street, through strikes.