Today's round of negotiations failed because the unions of primary school teachers, secondary school teachers, university lecturers and scholars, and nurses refused the government-proposed amendments to the Basic Collective Agreement and announced that they would ask their membership about it in a referendum.

Union leader Vilim Ribic said that termination of the Basic Collective Agreement by the government would be against the law and that in that case the unions would file lawsuits.

Deputy Prime Minister Neven Mimica and Labour Minister Mirando Mrsic said that the government did its best to accommodate the unions, adding that termination of the Basic Collective Agreement was "the last line of defence" of the projected budget expenses for the public-sector workers in the amount of 21.6 billion kuna for this year and that the government did not have more money for that purpose.

The ministers proposed to the unions to sign an annex to the Basic Collective Agreement with the government on Friday and thus settle the disputed issues by compromise. If all eight public-sector unions do no agree to that, the only course of action left to the government is reconciliation, arbitration, and termination of the Basic Collective Agreement, the said.

Leaders of the other four unions were angry at Ribic and leaders of the three unions that rejected the deal, saying that in the present time of crisis they were accepting the government's offer to save the Basic Collective Agreement and salaries for their members.

All those who refuse to sign the amended Basic Collective Agreement take upon them the responsibility for any long-term unfavourable consequences for the salaries of public-sector workers and for the entire labour legislation, they warned.