Romanian Subway Unionists Threaten To Resume Strikes Over Collective Work Contract, Wages

Union leader Ion Radoi told a news conference Friday the subway company's budget, which is pending approval in about a week, is the same as last year's because the government owes EUR30 million to French Alstom which ensures maintenance for Metrorex.

Radoi said this debt has placed the subway company on the IMF's monitoring list and called on the government to pay its debt arguing subway employees are not to blame and they should get wage raises because the company is turning profit.

He added subway workers might go on full-blown strike again in March unless the situation is resolved. Subway workers were on a two-day full-blown strike in November last year over wage claims but were forced to go back to work when a court ruled the protest illegal. The union leader said Friday Transport Minister Radu Berceanu is refusing negotiations on a new collective work contract saying the company's budget has not yet been approved.

Radoi also said the government is paying the French maintenance company about five times more than it should.

In 2005, when Alstom started ensuring the subway's maintenance, the government was paying an annual EUR10 million, while the subway employed 1,200 people and all its trains were old. In 2009, the government paid EUR41 million for subway maintenance while only half the train fleet was old and the number of employees had been reduced to half. In 2010, the government is supposed to pay Alstom EUR50 million.

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