Collective agreement "point of contention"

Collective agreement "point of contention"

“I have met with the unions three or four times and I will meet with them for the fifth time, if necessary,” Vučić told reporters after the "Reality Check" conference, organized in Belgrade by the Foreign Investors Council.

Serbia’s two biggest trade unions, the Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of Serbia (SSSS) and the United Branch Trade Unions “Independence” (UGS “Nezavisnost”), yesterday invited the prime minister and Labor Minister Aleksandar Vulin for a meeting to discuss the labor bill version that will be sent to parliament.

"Reforms"

Aleksandar Vučić stated on Thursday that reforms of the economic system will not run even a day behind schedule because Serbia deserves to be "a normal and successful country."

”We lived off frauds and lies and we spent more than we earned,” the prime minister said in the talks with the Foreign Investors Council and underscored that the government headed by him would carry out reforms with a view to recovering the economic system and ensuring higher employment regardless of the resistance.

He said that the labor law would be filed to the parliament for adoption in the next few days while the privatization law and bankruptcy law are being discussed. The law on planning and construction will be the next to be adopted and the draft law on tax system will be defined on Thursday.

”By the end of July, we will adopt all these laws,” Vučić announced and expressed the hope that on grounds of this document, the atmosphere will be created for the investors to increase their investments.

“You have our support and I expect you to invest even more, in keeping with the profit, of course,” Vučić said.

Vučić underscored that the Serbian government will not renounce the planned reforms and announced savings and fiscal consolidation.

Reforms in Serbia will not run behind schedule regardless of all the hardships and difficulties, Vučić said.

The Foreign Investors Council "knows just how difficult it is to change the labor law," Vučić added and recalled that only in one period, during the mandate of Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić, an attempt was made at the adoption of the law but it failed.

This is why I am proud of the fact that the government will see it through to the end because Serbia deserves to be a normal and successful country.

He said that the draft law on tax proceedings was defined on Thursday with a view to strengthening the fight against gray economy.

Speaking about business, Vučić said that by our stupidity and irresponsibility, we have completely stopped the development of business in Serbia and that the public debt and deficit are high because some irresponsible individuals increased salaries in the public sector.

We have lost billions of dinars and now we will have to save much more and implement fiscal consolidation measures, he said.

We will do our best to succeed and we are to face difficult obstacles, but we will manage to overcome them, Vučić said.