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Tripartite Doesn't Agree on Budget, Trade Unions Emphatically Say No
Monday 04 Octtber 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, October 4 (TASR) - The social partners - Government, trade unions and employers - at a tripartite session on Monday didn't find agreement on the 2011 state budget draft, with employers accepting it with certain reservations and trade unionists rejecting it flatly.
The Government is set to discuss the draft at its regular policy session on Wednesday.
"We didn't learn anything new. The trade unionists maintained their stance," said Labour Minister Jozef Mihal (SaS), adding that the trade unionists' approach wasn't constructive.
KOZ (Trade Union Confederation) vice-president Vladimir Mojs said that the austerity measures as proposed by the Government would affect common people the most. "We'd like to see more savings in expenditures," said Mojs. This would include higher taxation of people with higher incomes and the introduction of a lower VAT rate for certain goods.
Republic's Union of Employers (RUZ) chief Marian Jusko conceded certain reservations. "In total we accept the draft, as it fulfils the thesis that it's necessary to save (money) if we want to be better off in the future," said Jusko.
The expected temporary deceleration of Slovakia's economic growth is due to the fact that the former government spent too much, incurring debts, which must be paid now, added Jusko.
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