ZAGREB, Jan 15 (Hina) - Health Minister Andro Vlahusic said on Wednesday that today's doctors' strike failed, while the organisers of the strike claimed otherwise.
ZAGREB, Jan 15 (Hina) - Health Minister Andro Vlahusic said on
Wednesday that today's doctors' strike failed, while the
organisers of the strike claimed otherwise. #L#
"The majority of doctors are working, even though they support the
strike, and the Croatian Doctors' Union (HLS) believes that a
survey on the support to the strike is in fact a strike, which is not
correct," Vlahusic told Hina.
The minister says that doctors who wish to strike can do so freely.
He stressed that he personally supported unions' demands for
increased wages, but that the question remained whether the demands
were realistic.
The HLS demands an increase in interns' wages amounting to two
average wages (7,000 kuna) and in specialists' wages to 9,000
kuna.
Vlahusic claims, however, that the majority of doctors earn up to
9,000 kuna per month with service bonuses, tours of duty and stand-
by, and that by accepting the union demands doctors' wages would
increase to 13,500 kuna.
HLS president Ivica Babic voiced satisfaction with the results of
the first day of the doctors' strike. He claims that 90 percent of
doctors supported the strike.
"I expect tomorrow's support to be even better, even though doctors
will continue to work, handling only emergency cases, in line with
union instructions," Babic told Hina.
If an agreement with the government on union demands is not reached
by the end of the week, the scope of work in hospitals next week will
be reduced, Babic said.
(hina) it sb