Prague, July 30 (CTK) – The Social Democrats (CSSD) will support the demand of trade unions that salaries in the public sector go up by 10 percent next year, which would cost the state about 4.5 billion crowns, CSSD leader Jan Hamacek told journalists after a meeting of his party’s leadership today.
Hamacek, who is interior minister, said he would like the risk bonus paid to policemen and firefighters to be raised by 6 percent and their base salaries by 4 percent. This would mean additional expenditures of 1.5 billion crowns, he added.
The Labour and Social Affairs Ministry, headed by Jana Malacova (CSSD), will ask for further four billion crowns for higher parental benefits and one billion for investments in social services in 2019.
Hamacek said the CSSD would discuss the financial demands of individual ministries only after an agreement on the pay rise is made.
In June, the minority government of the ANO movement and the CSSD backed by the Communists (KSCM) approved the basic parameters of the state budget for 2019: a deficit of 50 billion crowns, revenues of 1,432 billion crowns and expenditures of 1,482 billion crowns, including 78.7 billion for investments. The figures include subsidies from EU funds.
Finance Minister Alena Schillerova (for ANO) will negotiate with individual ministers about their demands in August. The next year’s budget reckons with higher spending on pensions and the salaries of teachers, which are to raise by 15 percent, and lower spending on welfare benefits.
The government of Andrej Babis (ANO) must send the budget bill to the lower house of parliament by the end of September.