Although it was announced as a consultative hearing of representatives of the Government, employers, and unions on the General Collective Agreement, today's session of the Health Committee actually served the participants to exchange views, which is what they should normally do at the Social Council.
While workers await the new OKU, those who are negotiating continue - some in a wedge, others in a board. The Government reiterates that increasing the calculation value coefficient would only increase the salaries of public sector employees, but unions and employers think differently.
However, today it is clearer that they cannot agree among themselves on the increase itself, because the economy is not in favor of going from 90 to 100 euros.
"It's not the end of the world that there is a standstill at the moment," said Naida Nišić, Minister of Labor and Social Dialogue, at the committee today.
However, trade unionists believe that it could be, because if a new General Collective Agreement is not signed by the end of May, the consequences will only be seen, since without it, employers may not pay employees for night, overtime, or holiday hours this month.
The Government reiterates that increasing the value of the calculation coefficient would bring higher earnings to the public, not the private, sector.
"We need to come out and say that we have signed the General Collective Agreement with a calculation value from 90 to 100. Our citizens then expect it. If we say that it is a 10 percent increase, he expects to receive 10 percent on his salary on the first day he gets his salary. Most workers, the entire private sector, would not receive that 10 percent," said Nišić.
"We need to come out and say that we have signed the General Collective Agreement with a calculation value from 90 to 100. Our citizens then expect it. If we say that it is a 10% increase, he expects to receive 10% on his salary on the first day he gets his salary. The majority of workers, the entire private sector, would not receive that 10%," the minister added.
"If the accounting value of the coefficients were to increase, it would mean additional unplanned expenditures in the budget, creating a larger gap," explained Novica Vuković, Minister of Finance.
The Minister of Labor said that it appears that the unions and employers have reached an agreement among themselves, which the unionists deny, pointing out that the Prime Minister got involved late and that he has repeatedly ignored their demands.
"It would be crazy to believe that someone representing the private sector is negotiating with unions about increasing salaries in the public sector," said Ivana Mihajlović, representing the Union of Free Trade Unions of Montenegro (USSCG).
The fact that there is no agreement was confirmed by the discussion that followed at the consultative hearing on the OKA before the Parliamentary Committee on Health.
"We want to sign the General Collective Agreement where we have agreed on most of the text, and in the coming period, through the processes of discussions, consideration of further economic measures and possibilities, we will also discuss and agree on the growth of wages," said Slobodan Mikavica from the Employers' Union.
When asked by Duško Zarubica from the Confederation of Trade Unions of Montenegro (SSCG) whether this means that employers accept complexity coefficients and a one hundred euro calculation value, Mikavica replied:
"We have accepted coefficients that will eliminate all abuses. The calculated value of the coefficient at this moment is not acceptable to us."
"Will the value of the coefficient increase or not and will the complexity coefficients increase? Because it is not normal, colleagues from the private sector, for the basic salary of a high school student to be 300 euros?" asked Social Democrat MP Boris Mugoša.
The answer to this question in the coming period should be provided by the social partners. Although they hope for the imminent continuation of negotiations and the signing of the General Collective Agreement, each is defending its position.
"In my opinion, it is more important to preserve jobs and companies, and only then talk, and not to jeopardize the operations of business entities due to an individual increase of 10, 20, 30, 50 euros," said Suzana Radulović, representing the Employers' Union. "The hand is outstretched so that the calculation value of the coefficient can be adequately agreed with the coefficients that will standardize the basic and minimum wage," said Nišić.
The Minister added that the OKU should be defined as being for an indefinite period, due to the excessive stress that signing it causes. Although employers assure that there will be no problems until everyone signs, workers remain stressed, because some of them cannot exercise their rights in this interim period.
"We already have two situations where severance pay based on retirement has not been paid, because it depends solely on the General Collective Agreement," said MIhailović.
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