Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor has called on the trade union federations to resume negotiations about planned changes to labour legislation and announced that amendments to the Labour Act (ZOR) would incorporate the unions' proposals.
"I appeal to the trade unionists to sit at the negotiating table in the Economy Ministry and look at the draft amendments the government is proposing following their dilemmas," Kosor told a news conference in Zagreb on Monday while presenting the results of the ongoing implementation of the government's Economic Recovery Programme.
Kosor said the trade unionists had the right to collect signatures for calling a referendum but that no signature would change things for the better.
She expressed her satisfaction with President Ivo Josipovic's call for dialogue in search of a common ground.
The premier reiterated that it was untrue that the proposed changes to the labour legislation would mean that there would be no more collective agreements and collective bargaining, but stressed that it was impossible to retain collective agreements clinched when GDP used to rise 5-6 percent, since it dropped 5.8 percent in 2009 and 2.5 percent in Q1 2010.
The trade unions must assume responsibility for the present situation in Croatia and for whether there will be funds for the payment of salaries, pensions, and social welfare tomorrow, Kosor said, adding that her cabinet would do its utmost not to bring the payment of pensions into question.
Changing the ZOR would mean keeping jobs and salaries, she said.
Kosor also expressed her satisfaction with the implementation of the economic bailout plan.
There are reasons for concern, but also for optimism, provided that the programme is implemented, in which the government will persist, she said.
Kosor recalled that the lower, two per cent rate of the so-called crisis tax on all incomes would be abolished on 1 July as a result of which 1.5 million Croatians would have higher incomes.
Asked to comment on Croatian National Bank Governor Zeljko Rohatinski's statement that the Croatian government might pay debts to the clients of Ljubljanska Banka amidst speculations that Slovenia might block Croatia's European Union accession negotiations as long as Nova Ljubljanska Banka is not allowed to operate in Croatia, the premier said that she would not send messages to the central bank's governor via the media.
"I will ask him for a meeting to hear his opinion," Kosor said, adding that Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor promised that Nova Ljubljanska Banka would not be an obstacle on Croatia's EU road and that there would be no more roadblocks at all.
Kosor also announced a budget revision relatively soon.
