Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu announced on Tuesday that an ordinance was put into decision-making transparency that provides for salary increases of 10%, in two installments, for the categories with low incomes. Also, glasses settlements will be granted, within the limit of 500 lei.
“It was made transparent. It is a European requirement with settlements for glasses up to 500 lei; and the rest we are talking about increases of 5% and 5% for the categories that did not receive, for those with very low incomes”, said the prime minister.
Ciolacu added that the settlement of eyeglasses must be carried out for all categories, not only for magistrates. “We can’t make laws for a certain category, we can only judge each other. The government must cover the entire umbrella. Normally, with a consultation ophthalmology, that if you don’t need it, you don’t buy glasses”, he explained.
According to the project, employees from cultural institutions, the National Trade Register Office, diplomacy, defense, town halls and institutions financed from the Government’s and Parliament’s own revenues will receive two salary increases of 5% each – one in June and another in September.
“The level of the basic salary for the staff included in annexes no. III, IV, VII, VIII, as well as in chapter VI of annex no. V to the Framework Law no. 153/2017 on the remuneration of staff paid from public funds, with subsequent amendments and additions, is increased by 10%, compared to the level granted for December 2023, in two installments, respectively by 5% compared to the level granted for December 2023, starting from June 2024 and by 5% compared to the level granted for December 2023 starting from September 2024″, the ordinance states.
Ciolacu also said that the Government cannot afford higher salary increases for museum employees or librarians.
“At this moment, from what I established together with the Minister of Finance, the Government of Romania can afford this much. It (the ordinance, n.r.) is made transparent. But I tell you that the Government of Romania – what the Ministry of Finance conveyed to me – is that Romania can afford this budgetary effort at this moment. And I believe that since the beginning of the year, this approach has been fair and balanced,” he stated.
Regarding the reorganization of the ministries, Prime Minister Ciolacu declared that “very many” such projects “are transparent” and that they coordinated with the Ministry of Justice, so that “they do not come in an avalanche”. “There is a lot in transparency. They coordinated with the Minister of Justice, so that there would not be an avalanche, and then that postponement was also for this reason, and I had the discussion with the Minister of Justice, because they still need to be followed. I assume that in the next period, as always, as with us Romanians, it will be done on the last hundred meters (n.r.)”, said Ciolacu.