Bogdan Hossu, head of Romania’s union federation Cartel Alfa, said unionists will picket prefects’ offices across the country between March 1 and March 15 and plan a rally in capital Bucharest in the second half of April, followed by a full-blown strike in May.
The Government has passed several normative acts recently cutting jobs in the public sector, freezing wages and eliminating wage bonuses in a move to cut public spending and keep the budget deficit in check.
Romania was deeply affected by the ongoing economic downturn and relies on a EUR20 billion loan package from the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and the European Union. To continue getting the loan money, the country needs to keep public spending in check and trim its overstaffed public sector.