The President of the United Branch Unions (UGS) “Independence,“ Čedanka Andrić, said today that during the negotiations for the minimum wage for 2025, she will insist that the amount exceeds the cost of the minimum consumer basket and aligns with the costs of the average consumer basket.
“If there’s a projection of what wages will be in 2027, we need to start catching up to those wages; otherwise, I don’t know how the Serbian government plans to achieve the goal it has set itself,” Andrić said, commenting that according to the government’s projection, the minimum wage in 2027 should be 650 euros, while this year it is around 47,000 dinars.
“Either the Serbian government has set an unrealistic goal, or we need to move towards that goal faster and not just raise minimum wages that do not ensure a dignified life,” she said.
“They have missed the wage projection for 2027 without this,” Andrić said.
She added that if “the Serbian government wants workers to believe in its projections, they must feel the benefits of such plans.”
“Until now, we have tried to consider the government’s arguments, but they have not respected that, and we have no reason to be realistic in our demands; we can be unrealistic too, if the state is so unrealistic in its promises, let’s see who will come to their senses first,” Andrić said.
She assessed that she does not see why unions should always be “constructive and disappointed.”
The Commission for Minimum Wage Negotiations, which is expected to begin in mid-August among social partners, unions, the government, and employers, and conclude by September 15, has not yet been established, she said. UGS “Independence” will adopt its negotiating position at the Executive Board meeting early that month and align it with the platform of the Union of Autonomous Trade Unions of Serbia.
Asked why the calculation of the minimum wage for the next year uses data on consumer baskets for May of the current year, which is the last published before the start of negotiations in August, Andrić said that the union insists on faster publication of consumer basket cost data.
“This time, we will have less understanding for data delays, so we will focus on the average basket, not the minimum one that falls below all criteria,” Andrić said, noting that the average April basket cost around 103,000 dinars, with the minimum slightly over 53,000.
Asked whether this year President Aleksandar Vučić, as in previous years, will announce the amount of the minimum wage before negotiations, Andrić said she is surprised he has not already made that decision public.
“Last year, when the minimum wage amount for this year was adopted, Vučić promised there would be a possibility to increase wages again in 2024, and we asked for that in May, but the government rejected us, stating there were no conditions, a stance echoed by employers,” Andrić said.
She highlighted that the Government of Serbia has not yet appointed members to the Socio-Economic Council, and the Minister of Labor, Veterans, and Social Affairs (Nemanja Starović) has not held a meeting with social partners, so his legislative plan is not known, not only for this year but also for the next.
“The Labor Law, which should regulate both labor and occupational safety, will certainly not be amended this year, and whether it will be next year depends on the government and the minister,” Andrić said.
She emphasized that working in factories at 45 degrees Celsius, which have been made of sheet metal over the past decade, and such conditions during this summer can last up to two months, resembles working in “heated cans.”
According to her, occupational safety must be regulated systemically because appeals to employers for longer breaks and more water are short-term solutions.
She added that the union insists with employers on the ground to provide normal working conditions worsened by climate change, but employers still hesitate to invest in air conditioning and insulation.
She expects workers to be productive at 45 degrees, and in trolleybuses without air conditioning, drivers work eight hours with wet towels around their necks.
