The unions have failed, wages in construction will not increase

Prague - Collective negotiations on wages in the construction industry have so far ended in failure for the unions. Today's talks between the Construction Trade Union and the Union of Entrepreneurs in Construction (SPS) resulted in an agreement to maintain the current tariffs until the end of March. Further talks will be held then, said the head of the construction unions, Stanislav Antoniv, to ČTK today.
    "Of course, I am not satisfied with this," the union official remarked. The unions initially demanded an 11 percent wage increase in construction for this year. In contrast, the SPS proposed freezing wages for construction workers until mid-year.
    According to the latest data from the Czech Statistical Office, the average nominal monthly wage of employees increased by 10.2 percent to 27,988 CZK in November 2008. The real wage increased by 5.6 percent. The average hourly wage rose by 21.7 percent compared to the same period in 2007 to 196 CZK.
    The reason for the tariff freeze is said to be, apart from the traditional decline in construction during the winter months, also the overall uncertainty that prevails in the sector due to the crisis. However, according to Antoniv, the situation should be clearer by March. "Everything is open," he said, noting that negotiations will restart almost from the beginning.
    It is still not entirely clear regarding the collective agreements of individual construction companies. According to the head of the unions, only 31 out of 107 company contracts have been concluded so far. In 19 of them, representatives of the workers reportedly agreed with employers on wage increases ranging from two to seven percent. In another 12 companies, the current tariffs will be maintained. "If the situation regarding wage contracts in the firms were better, our negotiating position would also be better," the union chairman pointed out.