The CMKOS union congress has started in Prague, they will elect a leadership and discuss the strategy – LIVE
Updates: 04/29/2022 16:09
Released: 29.04.2022, 16:00
Prague – In the coming years, most unions want to increase Czech earnings faster and bring them closer to incomes in Western countries. They call for the preparation of a long-term plan for economic growth and modernization of the economy. This was stated by its current leader Josef Středula at a press conference at the congress of the Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions (ČMKOS). According to him, there is still a “wage iron curtain” between East and West.
The two-day convention of the largest trade union headquarters in the Czech Republic began today in Prague. Two hundred trade unions from 31 unions will elect a new leadership for the next four years. They will also discuss their strategy for the next period. President Miloš Zeman will arrive at the professional event on Saturday, he will speak at 10:00, said Středula. He is again the only candidate to run for the CMKOS presidential contribution.
“We would like the Czech Republic to approach the fifteen old EU countries in terms of pay, so that the opportunity to join the eurozone is dignified. We would like the Czech Republic to have a long-term economic growth plan with modern country conditions and 21st century infrastructure,” said Středula. He mentioned the support of fields with high added value. According to the current vice-president Vít Samek, the unions will also be called upon to reform the taxes. They also want to strive to ensure that the profits of branches of foreign companies remain in the Czech Republic. The headquarters also wants lifelong learning, added Vice President Radka Sokolová. Samek and Sokolová also run again without anti-candidates.
The long-term program for the coming years will be approved by the trade unions on Saturday. In his presentation at the Středula Congress, he calculated ten requirements. These include the fight against the spread of lies, housing construction, maintaining coal heating, ensuring food self-sufficiency, price regulation, regulating the status of national administrator, revising the so-called green agreement, reassessing social benefits and translating labor legislation into Ukrainian. He also talked about enacting a five-week holiday or reducing the eight-hour working time by half an hour without losing earnings.
According to Středula, from 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2021, 239 new trade unions were formed. “In four years, 54,578 new members joined the unions, in the last year it was 10,550. This is a multiple of the number of members of many political parties that are in the Czech Parliament,” Středula said. According to him, the successes of trade unions in recent years include, for example, the abolition of waiting periods, the enforcement of kurarbeit, the inclusion of lumbar spine injuries among occupational diseases or higher earnings in companies with collective bargaining.
Right at the beginning, Středula condemned the war in Ukraine and called for it not to be overlooked, thanking the refugees for their help. In his speech, he mentioned the victims of accidents at work and the importance of ensuring safety at work. According to preliminary figures, 88 people died at work last year, the head of the headquarters specified.
The head of the Senate, Miloš Vystrčil, and the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labor Marian Jurečka (KDU-ČSL) spoke at the congress in the morning. The Minister of Justice Pavel Blažek (ODS) and the head of the opposition ANO Andrej Babiš and the chairman of the non-parliamentary CSSD Michal Šmarda were in the hall. Grandma is then on twitter he complained that the trade unions did not let him speak. “Mr. Babiš did not invite us to the YES congress. We were so generous that we invited him,” Středula responded.
The trade union congress was opened by the performance of two violinists in dark evening robes. They played part of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in a modern arrangement. They then appeared in the program before noon.