Unions protest cuts in pay

Prague, Sept 21 (CTK) - About 40,000 people took part in the demonstration against the planned 10-percent reduction of the state spending on wages in the public sector that the unions staged in Prague yesterday, police spokeswoman Ivana Jezkova told CTK.

The organisers put the number of participants at 45,000.

For about an hour and a half, leaders of the teachers, policemen, firemen and public administration workers' unions addressed the crowd gathering in the centre of Prague.

CMKOS umbrella union chairman Jaroslav Zavadil asked the protesters to prepare for further clashes with the centre-right government.

"If they keep arrogant, they will have what they want. Everything began with the public finance reform in which Mirek Topolanek, Petr Necas and Miroslav Kalousek assisted. By the reform they deprived the state of 80 billion crowns," Zavadil said.

The three were the prime minister, labour minister and finance minister in Topolanek's (Civic Democrats, ODS) cabinet in 2007-2009. Necas (ODS) heads the current cabinet in which Kalousek (TOP 09) retains the post of finance minister.

Police union head Milan Stepanek said the union is against pay cuts, against the police's civilian employees being laid off, police stations being closed and the foreigner police being restructured.

Firefighters' union head Zdenek Oberreiter said the unionists find it unfair if only one group, public sector employees, is to help lower the state budget gap. "So drastic cuts will threaten public safety," he said.

Alena Vondrova, who spoke on behalf of public administration workers' union, said they are viewed as almost second category citizens [by the government]. She said the cuts would bring the middle classes to poverty and devastation.

The protest was attended by leaders of the opposition political parties, including Communist (KSCM) chairman Vojtech Filip, Social Democrat (CSSD) acting head Bohuslav Sobotka and former CSSD chairman and PM Jiri Paroubek.

The demonstration started outside the Interior Ministry this morning. Tens of protesting policemen and firemen broke into the building, damaging the entrance lobby. They called on Interior Minister Radek John (Public Affairs, VV) to resign.

Afterwards the crowd moved outside the Government Office where it reunited with several hundreds of protesting health care workers and public administration clerks.

They carried banners reading "Less money, more crime", "Lower your own pay," "Yes to saving, no to cuts" etc.

The police closed the relevant part of the city centre for traffic until after the demonstration, Jezkova said.

Many of the policemen on duty, who monitored the demonstration, wore yellow ribbons on their uniforms to express their support for the demonstrators.

No incident occurred during the protest. Two women collapsed, perhaps due to sickness or dehydration and received medical treatment, said medical rescuers' spokeswoman Jirina Ernestova.

Necas's centre-right government wants to lower its spending on civil servants' wages by 10 percent. Labour and Social Affairs Minister Jaromir Drabek (TOP 09) wants the mandatory base pay to be reduced by up to 43 percent and "more space" to be given to personal bonuses.

The unions plan to hold another meeting with Drabek on Wednesday. Later on Wednesday, Drabek's bill is to be discussed by the cabinet.

The unions warn that they would stage further protests if their demands were not met. The health and social care workers' union has gone on strike alert and said it may stage a strike on October 15.