Staff salaries in Romania’s public health sector will be raised, but local hospitals will have to cut expenses for medicine, sanitary materials or investments if they don’t get extra money from the state. Raising the salaries of the most poorly paid employees in the public health sector could cost some EUR 40 million per year.

The unions in the public health sector reached an agreement with the Health Ministry after days of protest. According to this agreement, all employees that make less than RON 1,500 (EUR 340) a month will get a 10 percent raise, according to Digi 24 news station.

Some 125,000 employees in the health sector will benefit from this measure. Considering an average wage of RON 1,200 (EUR 270), this will require a financial effort of EUR 40 million, which is the size of the budget for a large hospital. A hospital which has some 500 employees in this situation could pay up to EUR 8,550 a month extra for salaries and will have less money to cover its other costs if it doesn’t get extra money.

However, the finance minister promised the unions that there is money to support the salary increases.

editor@romania-insider.com