Romanian Unions Threaten Nationwide Protests Over Austerity Plans

The National Trade Union Bloc (BNS) announced on Monday, on behalf of all five major confederations, that a joint letter has been sent to Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan requesting an urgent meeting today, ahead of the adoption of austerity measures currently under governmental discussion.

Union representatives accuse the government of a lack of transparency and meaningful consultation, claiming they have been entirely excluded from the dialogue process regarding these policies.

According to the public statement, the meeting of the confederations took place this morning between 8:30 a.m. and 10:45 a.m.

“We have decided to speak with one voice and take joint action in response to the abusive way the government is promoting these legislative acts without consulting social partners,” said Mircea Burlacu, Vice President of the National Trade Union Bloc.

If they do not receive an official invitation to talks by the end of the day, the confederations have announced they will send a formal request to President Nicușor Dan to exercise his constitutional role as mediator in resolving the conflict between the unions and the government.

“Employees and trade union organizations are not to blame for the disastrous state of the budget. We are open to negotiations, but contributions must be proportional to each party’s responsibility. (…) We are willing to discuss, to negotiate, to help develop a joint action plan, provided everyone contributes proportionally to their role in causing this situation. In other words, we are preparing for protests if no common ground is reached and do not rule out launching general strike procedures starting this fall,” Burlacu concluded.