STRIKING RAIL WORKERS REDUCE DEMANDS

ZAGREB, Feb 26 (Hina) - Representatives with two Croatian rail workers' union federations lowered Monday their earlier demand for a 100 percent wage rise to a 60 percent rise. "We have opted for this in order to end the strike up and reach a mutually acceptable agreement," head of the Strike Committee Zlatko Pavletic told a news conference. The rail workers were on strike since Thursday, causing to the Croatian Railways Co. (HZ) a 1.5 million kunas (U.S. dlrs 280,000) damage daily, according to unions. Pavletic said he hoped that today's negotiations with the Transportation Ministry and HZ managers would be "a turning point". "If we fail to reach the agreement we may face a lasting strike, like the one in 1994," he said, adding that negotiations staged over the weekend "did show some progress, but not sufficient, and so we had decided to make the first step." (Hina) jn bk 261509 MET feb 96