Radio România Internațional

Tag: salaries

January 17, 2025

RUSSIA The Romanian ministry of foreign affairs firmly condemns the Russian forces’ irresponsible attacks that violate all the norms of international law, and emphasises that Russia’s illegal and unprovoked aggression against Ukraine generates risks for the entire region. The statement was made as the monitoring and surveillance systems of Romania’s defence ministry Friday morning noted violations of Romanian airspace, in Tulcea county, after Russian forces resumed their drone attacks on civilian targets and port infrastructure in Ukraine. ‘Respect for sovereignty, security and peace are obligations that the Russian Federation violates systematically and without provocation. The persistent aggressive actions, the illegal occupation of some of the neighboring territories and the illegal full-scale war that Russia has been waging for almost 3 years against a sovereign neighbor are a persistent and serious threat not only to Ukraine but to the entire Black Sea region and NATO’s eastern flank,’ the foreign ministry says. The foreign ministry and the defence ministry also mention that they have been informing NATO in real time about the situations caused by these attacks, and remain in permanent contact with it.

PROTESTS Several thousand police officers and employees from defence, public order and national security institutions, as well as reserve officers from all over Romania take part in a protest in Bucharest today. They are unhappy with a government order that has significantly reduced their incomes. The act scraps overtime pay and payments for days worked on weekends or public holidays. The protesters argue that the income of operational police officers will be severely affected, with decreases ranging between EUR 200 and 2,000. The participants are marching towards the ministry of finance, the ministry of justice, the labour ministry, and the interior ministry, with the government headquarters as their final destination.

ELECTIONS The first round of the presidential elections in Romania will take place on May 4, and the second round on May 18, the government has decided. Stricter rules have also been set for the election campaign, especially regulating online campaigns. Failure to comply with them may entail fines for major online platforms of up to 5% of their turnover. Romanians in the diaspora will still have 3 days to vote, but on the last day, that is, on Sunday, polling stations will close at 9:00 p.m. Romanian time, regardless of the local time zone. The new provisions have been criticised by several NGOs. The presidential election was cancelled at the end of last year by the Constitutional Court, on grounds that the election process had been flawed.

FLU Flu vaccination remains the easiest, safest and most effective protection method against seasonal diseases, Romanian doctors reiterate amid increases in the number of respiratory infections. Specialists emphasise that as the percentage of the vaccinated population increased, flu viruses spread less in communities decreases. A National Institute for Public Health report shows that the number of people diagnosed with respiratory infections has doubled, with almost 91,000 cases reported in the last week. There are almost 600 patients diagnosed with clinical flu and over 200 for whom lab tests have confirmed infection with the flu virus, most of them in Bucharest, Cluj, Braşov, Constanţa, Alba and Galaţi. Five more people have died from the flu, bringing the death toll since the beginning of the season up to 9.

MIDDLE EAST Israel and Hamas have officially signed a ceasefire and hostage release agreement in Gaza, after overcoming last-minute disputes. The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that the Security Cabinet and the government are meeting later today to ratify the document. The US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he expects the implementation of the agreement to begin on Sunday as planned, with the release of the first 3 Israeli hostages. At least one of the far-right Israeli ministers who oppose the agreement has resigned. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Israel, political life in Israel is shaping up to be troubled, with a great potential for surprises and even changes.

TENNIS The Romanian tennis players Gabriela Ruse and Jaqueline Cristian, in separate pairs, qualified for the second round of the women’s doubles event at the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, after winning their respective matches on Friday in Melbourne. Ruse and Ukraine’s Marta Kostiuk won against the Australians Destanee Aiuava and Maddison Inglis 6-4, 7-6 (7/2), and in the second round they will face strong opponents in Elise Mertens (Belgium) and Ellen Perez (Australia), seeded 6th. Jaqueline Cristian and her Italian partner Camilla Rosatello defeated Cristina Bucşa (Spain) / Iana Sizikova (Russia) 6-2, 6-7 (2/7), 6-4. Cristian and Rosatello will next face Leylah Fernandez (Canada) and Nadia Kicenok (Ukraine), seeded 16th. In another first-round match in the women’s doubles, Monica Niculescu and Sofia Kenin (US) were defeated by Miyu Kato (Japan) / Renata Zarazua (Mexico), 6-4, 6-4. In the men’s doubles, the Romanian-Argentine pair Victor Cornea / Mariano Navone were defeated in the second round by Germany’s Kevin Krawietz / Tim Puetz, 4-6, 6-1. (AMP)

17 January 2025
December 12, 2024

SCHENGEN The EU interior ministers convening in the Justice and Home Affairs Council have decided to lift controls at internal land borders with and between Bulgaria and Romania, starting with 1 January 2025. “Through the coordinated efforts of Romanian authorities, through steps at political and diplomatic level, we can finally enjoy a well-deserved right, legitimately acquired by Romania”, president Klaus Iohannis said, welcoming the decision announced in Brussels. “The advantages of our membership in the free movement area are multiple and have a direct impact on citizens, on the economy and on the image of our country. Scrapping border controls means faster and simpler movement for those who travel, the time spent at the borders will be considerably reduced, and logistics costs for companies will decrease, which will rapidly increase the competitiveness of Romanian products and services on the European market. Romania’s attractiveness to foreign investors will also increase considerably”, the head of state also said. “It is a historic decision, a victory for justice and national dignity and a clear signal that we will never accept being second-class citizens in Europe,” PM Marcel Ciolacu also stressed. “It is, above all, a triumph of all Romanians, regardless of their political choice or social situation, a victory for teamwork,” the PM added. The European Commission welcomed the unanimous decision of the JHA Council, noting that “The full accession of both countries not only strengthens the Schengen Area, but will further consolidate the internal market, increase travel, trade and tourism. A solid Schengen Area strengthens the unity of the EU and makes the EU stronger on a global scale.”

GOVERNMENT Negotiations continue in Parliament to define a government programme for the pro-European coalition. The talks are taking place between the Social Democratic Party, the National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, as well as the ethnic minorities group. According to the negotiations so far, the new cabinet would have only 15 or 16 ministers at most, and a small number of state secretaries. The distribution of these positions among the coalition parties is yet to be decided. The structure of the new government should be finalised by the end of the week. In addition, the coalition party leaders are also to decide on the new parliamentary majority will operate and who will take over the leadership of the two chambers. The new parliament is due to convene next Friday for a first session, in which the new senators and deputies will be validated.

SALARIES In Romania, net average wages per month in October reached around EUR 1,050, up 12.3% compared to the corresponding month in 2023, the National Statistics Institute announced on Thursday. The highest values were reported in the IT&C sector, and the lowest in the textile industry. According to the Institute, average net earnings increased in October compared to September in most economic sectors. In the public sector, in October, salary increases were operated in education and public administration. In healthcare and social assistance, average net earnings decreased slightly compared to the previous month.

INFLATION The annual inflation rate in Romania rose to 5.11% in November, as against 4.67% in October. Compared to November 2023, food prices rose by 5%, and services by over 7.5%, according to the National Statistics Institute. The National Bank of Romania has revised upwards its inflation forecast for the end of the year, to 4.9%.

FOOTBALL The Romanian football champions, FCSB, are taking on the German side Hoffenheim tonight in Sinsheim, in the 6^th round of the Europa League group stage. With three wins, a draw and a defeat, FCSB has 10 points and is in 10^th place. The Romanian champions hope for another victory, which will improve their chances to rank among the top 8 teams qualified straight into the round of 16. Hoffenheim has 5 points, with one win, two draws and two defeats, and is in 25^th place, one place below the play-off qualification zone. (AMP)

12 December 2024
November 27, 2024

ELECTION The Constitutional Court of Romania is expected to validate the results of the first round of the presidential election by November 28, with the campaign for the second round due to begin on November 29. The Central Electoral Bureau Tuesday presented the final results of Sunday’s ballot. According to them, the non-affiliated candidate Călin Georgescu won the first election round with 22.94% of the votes. Second came the Save Romania Union leader, Elena Lasconi, with 19.18%, followed by the president of the Social Democratic Party, PM Marcel Ciolacu, with 19.15%. Ranking below them are the head of the Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), George Simion, with 13.86%, the president of the National Liberal Party, Nicolae Ciuca with 8.79% and the former NATO deputy secretary general Mircea Geoană, who ran independently and was voted for by 6.32% of the voters. The other candidates got less than 5% each.

EU The European Parliament is today voting on the new European Commission team, headed for her second term in office by Ursula von der Leyen. Romania’s nomination, Roxana Mînzatu, has been designated for a vice-president post in the new Commission, in charge with people, skills and preparedness. Von Der Leyen wants a different structure for the Commission, with 6 vice-presidents and 20 commissioners. The new body is to take office on December 1. Also today, the EP is to vote on the bloc’s budget for next year, which will be 6% higher than in 2024, namely almost EUR 199.5 billion in commitments and EUR 155 billion in total payments.

MOLDOVA The European Parliament prepares a EUR 1.8 bln financial package for the Republic of Moldova. Convening in a plenary meeting in Strasbourg, MEPs agreed that the result of Moldova’s referendum on EU integration compels the Union to take measures to support the country. The Romanian MEP Siegfried Mureşan explained that, among other things, the EP will look into ways to adjust the grant-to-loan ratio. In turn, Victor Negrescu, a vice-president of the EP, said the goal was for the final vote on this package to take place in May 2025. He also said steps are being taken to open an EP office in Moldova’s capital city, to provide consultancy and support in transposing the EU legislation into national law. Meanwhile, Chişinău yesterday hosted the 10^th Forum on European Integration, attended by Moldova’s president, Maia Sandu. Moldova submitted its official EU accession application on March 4 2022, just days after Russia invaded Ukraine, and in June 2022 the European Council acknowledged Moldova as on accession candidate country.

SALARIES Gross minimum wages in Romania will be raised as of January 1 from approx. EUR 743 to roughly EUR 814, according to negotiations between the government, employers’ associations and trade unions. The bill drafted by the labour ministry has been subject to public review and might be approved by the government in today’s meeting. Romania may thus come in line with a European directive under which workers have the right to fair wages, able to ensure decent living standards. Gross minimum wages should range between 47% and 52% of the national gross average salaries, and a number of criteria should be taken into account, such as spending power, salary increase rates and national productivity rates.

FOOTBALL Romanian football champions FCSB play on Thursday on home turf against Olympiakos Piraeus, in the 5^th round of Europa League. FCSB rank 8^th, with 9 points (3 wins and a defeat) while Olympiakos, the defending Conference League champions, rank 11^th, with 7 points. The Romanian team is also to play in the current Europa League season against Hoffenheim (December 12, away from home), Qarabag (January 23, away from home) and Manchester United (January 30, on home turf). The top 8 teams qualify in the 8^th-finals, while the teams ranking 9^th to 24^th will take part in playoffs for the 8^th-finals. (AMP)

27 November 2024
November 7, 2024 UPDATE

SUMMIT The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, pleaded for short and long-term solutions at a roundtable on migration occasioned by the Summit of the European Political Community in Budapest on Thursday. At the talks on migration, Klaus Iohannis warned that this remains an important challenge at European level, which requires a common and comprehensive response. He emphasised that migration continues to be worrisome in the context of the conflict in the Middle East and the continued war in Ukraine. Mr. Iohannis also said that Romania remains committed both to the implementation of effective migration management measures and to ensuring the security of the EU’s external borders. On the sidelines of the summit, the Romanian head of state also attended a meeting focused on support for the Republic of Moldova, alongside president Maia Sandu and other European leaders. At the end of the meeting in Budapest, the European leaders adopted a joint statement welcoming the results of the referendum and the presidential elections in the Republic of Moldova, and committing to providing further support so that the state can carry on its reforms and fight foreign interference. Klaus Iohannis also had a bilateral meeting with the secretary general of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset.

VISIT The Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu will make a visit to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on November 12 and 13, where he will have meetings with his counterpart Keir Starmer, with the Speaker of the House of Commons, and will participate in the Romania-UK Economic Forum. According to the spokesperson of the Romanian government, ahead of this visit, the Cabinet approved in Thursday’s meeting a memorandum updating the Convention between the two countries in the field of taxation and preventing tax evasion. The document takes into account the changes made in the Romanian legislation in 2023 and those related to Romania’s goal of joining the OECD.

DEFENCE “Russia’s aggressive actions in the Black Sea region force us to have a common perspective, able to generate a firm response to the emerging threats at our borders,” said the Romanian defence minister Angel Tîlvăr at a meeting of defense ministers in South-Eastern Europe, held in Tirana (Albania). According to a ministry news release, the meeting was an opportunity to discuss the impact of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and its implications for regional security. In this context, Angel Tîlvăr highlighted Romania’s role as a pillar of stability in the extended Black Sea region, an area that has become a crucial point for Euro-Atlantic security. “Only through a united approach can we ensure the security of our region and stability at the borders of the EU and NATO,” he also said. On the sidelines of the meeting, in bilateral talks with his Moldovan counterpart, Anatolie Nosatiy, Tilvǎr emphasised the importance of firm support for the Republic of Moldova in the face of security challenges and destabilisation attempts, part of the Russian Federation’s hybrid actions.

AGRICULTURE The Common Agricultural Policy needs a separate budget, and farmers need to be sure they will receive the funds without limitations linked to the rule of law or other unrelated conditions, the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, said in Bucharest. On the sidelines of his official visit to Romania, the EU Commissioner attended the National Conference of the Romanian Farmers’ Club jointly with the minister of agriculture, Florin Barbu. The European official said that, at EU level, the agricultural trade balance with third countries reached a record-high surplus of EUR 70 billion in 2023. The Conference was attended by farmers, high-ranking Romanian and European officials with responsibilities in the development of agriculture policies and strategies, leaders in the field of agricultural technologies, as well as representatives of farmers’ associations at European and national levels.

SALARIES The average annual full-time adjusted salary of Romanians is the fourth lowest in the European Union. Eurostat data shows an annual increase of approx. EUR 2,600 for 2023, but the total amount remains less than half of the EU average. The EU adjusted average annual salary the last year was EUR 37,900, while in Romania it was approx. EUR 17,700. Luxembourg holds the record with an average full-time salary of over EUR 81,000, followed by Denmark and Ireland. At the opposite pole is Bulgaria, with EUR 13,500 per year, followed by Hungary and Greece.

US ELECTION The US President Joe Biden gave assurances on Thursday that the American electoral system is fair and that a peaceful and orderly transition of power will be ensured. The statement was made in a speech addressed to the American nation on the election results and preparations for the transition on January 20, when President-elect Donald Trump will return to the White House, after defeating the Democrat Kamala Harris. “We accept the choice the country made. I’ve said many times that you can’t love your country only when you win,” Biden said in his first media appearance after Trump’s victory. As for the integrity of the American electoral system — “it is honest, it is fair, and it is transparent,” Biden said. “And it can be trusted, win or lose.” Leaders around the world reacted after Donald Trump announced his victory in the US presidential election. (AMP)

7 November 2024
May 24, 2024 UPDATE

Salaries – Gross minimum wages will be raised to roughly 740 Euros as of July 1, and the facility granted to employers, under which 40 Euros of employees’ salaries are tax free will stay in place until the end of the year, the Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu announced on Thursday, after a meeting of the three-party council comprising government, employers’ union and trade union officials. On the other hand, the government has increased the financial assistance for people with disabilities. As of July 1, the allowance for an adult with disabilities will be 105 Euros, and the one for a child with severe disabilities will be 92 Euros. According to official data, some 390,000 people will benefit from the increase. The government has also approved state aid for the national airline, Tarom, which the transport minister Sorin Grindeanu says is a major step for saving the company.

Judiciary – The former chief operative of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), Florian Coldea, was placed by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate under court supervision on bail. The same measure has been ordered with respect to ret. gen. Dumitru Dumbravă, the former head of the Service’s judicial service, and to the lawyer Doru Trăilă. The 3 are charged with influence peddling and money laundering, and are probed into following a complaint filed by the businessman Cătălin Hideg, who was sentenced to 4 years in prison in a European Public Prosecutor’s Office investigation into frauds involving EU funds. The businessman claims that Coldea and Dumbravă had asked him to pay 600,000 Euros using the lawyer Doru Trăilă as a go-between, in exchange for a suspended sentence in court.

Drone – The first Romanian drone is going to be produced at the Carfil factory, in Braşov, in central Romania, a subsidiary of ROMARM S.A. National Company. A first step in this direction was taken on Friday, at the “Black Sea Defense and Aerospace” international exhibition, following the signing of a strategic agreement with the American manufacturer of military and civil drones, Periscope Aviation. The Romanian Economy Minister, Radu Oprea, said that the agreement is a first for the Romanian defense industry, being the first strategic partnership of a domestic company in the field of construction of military and civilian drone devices. He added that two other agreements related to the research activity in the field were also signed. The participants in the “Black Sea Defense and Aerospace” exhibition, an event that takes place in Bucharest, said that the objective of the agreement is the mass production of a 100% Romanian drone, with variants intended for both defense and civil domains, such as agriculture.

Treason – A Romanian citizen was placed under preventive arrest for treason. He is accused of informing the Russian Embassy in Bucharest about NATO military objectives in Romania. The prosecutors of the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism DIICOT reported that, as early as 2022, the Romanian supervised the military objectives near the city of Tulcea, in the southeast of the country, gathered military information and took photographs of combat equipment and its movement in the border area with Ukraine, which he sent to diplomats from the Russian diplomatic representation in Bucharest. DIICOT specified that, following house searches, several pieces of evidence were identified and seized. A Russian diplomat from Bucharest was expelled, on the grounds that he would have carried out activities that run counter to the provisions of the 1961 Vienna Convention.

Tennis – The Romanian tennis players Sorana Cîrstea, Ana Bogdan, Jaqueline Cristian and Irina Begu found out their opponents in the first round of the tournament at Roland Garros, the second Grand Slam tournament of the year, following the drawing of lots held on Thursday in Paris. Sorana Cîrstea, seed number 28, will debut against the Russian Ana Blinkova, whom she defeated in 2020, in Dubai. Ana Bogdan will take on the French Elsa Jacquemot in their first match in the professional circuit. In turn, Jaqueline Cristian will have a tough match against the Latvian Jelena Ostapenko, world number 10. Jaqueline Cristian won in 2021, in the round of 16 in St. Petersburg, her only match played so far against the 2016 Roland Garros champion. And Irina Begu will meet, in the first round, an opponent from the qualifications. (LS)

24 May 2024
May 24, 2024

SALARIES Gross minimum wages will be raised to roughly EUR 740 as of July 1, and the facility granted to employers, under which EUR 40 of employees’ salaries are tax free will stay in place until the end of the year, the Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu announced on Thursday, after a meeting of the three-party council comprising government, employers’ union and trade union officials. On the other hand, the government has increased the financial assistance for people with disabilities. As of July 1, the allowance for an adult with disabilities will be EUR 105, and the one for a child with severe disabilities will be EUR 92. According to official data, some 390,000 people will benefit from the increase. The government has also approved state aid for the national airline, Tarom, which the transport minister Sorin Grindeanu says is a major step for saving the company.

JUDICIARY The former chief of operations for the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), Florian Coldea, was placed by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate under court supervision on bail. The same measure has been ordered with respect to ret. gen. Dumitru Dumbravă, the former head of the Service’s judicial service, and to the lawyer Doru Trăilă. The 3 are charged with influence peddling and money laundering, and are probed into following a complaint filed by the businessman Cătălin Hideg, who was sentenced to 4 years in prison in a European Public Prosecutor’s Office investigation into frauds involving EU funds. The businessman claims that Coldea and Dumbravă had asked him to pay EUR 600,000 using the lawyer Doru Trăilă as an go-between, in exchange for a suspended sentence in court.

FESTIVAL Events devoted to the Days of Romanians Abroad begin in Bucharest today. The festival, organized every year on the last Sunday in May, has reached its 7^th year. More than 500 Romanians in the diaspora and in communities in 34 countries are expected to attend. The celebrations bring together Romanian artists from the country and from abroad, as well as members of the business and academic communities of Romanians living abroad.

MOLDOVA Romania continues to provide assistance to the Republic of Moldova in areas like electricity, the reconstruction of schools and university campuses and equipment for public order institutions. Under an order passed in Thursday’s Cabinet meeting, Romania will contribute over EUR 2 mln to the reconstruction of a student dorm in Cahul, in the south of Moldova. The decision is based on an agreement signed by the 2 governments in February 2022, concerning non-reimbursable financial aid of EUR 100 mln.

VISIT Her Majesty Margareta, Custodian of the Crown, and his Royal Highness Prince Radu, Thursday visited the NATO Support and Procurement Agency in Luxembourg and met with Romanians working in that institution. On this occasion, Her Majesty Margareta mentioned that the visit to Luxembourg was intended to help support the Republic of Moldova in its EU accession efforts, while Prince Radu pointed out that the Romanian nation has embraced the values of the Western world. Prince Radu also voiced his satisfaction that the huge effort that Moldova is making “with such scarce means and such great vulnerability, but at the same time with so much dignity,” is acknowledged everywhere. Also on Thursday, the royal couple were received by his Royal Highness Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg for a private luncheon at the Grand Ducal Palace.

TENNIS The Romanian tennis players Sorana Cîrstea, Ana Bogdan, Jaqueline Cristian and Irina Begu Thursday night found out their opponents in the first round of the Roland Garros tournament, the second Grand Slam of the year. Sorana Cîrstea, seeded 28, will take on Ana Blinkova (Russia), whom she defeated in 2020 in Dubai. Ana Bogdan plays against Elsa Jacquemot (France) in their first encounter in professional competitions. Jaqueline Cristian has a tough match ahead, against no. 10 in the world Jelena Ostapenko (Latvia). Jaqueline Cristian won her only match so far against the 2016 Roland Garros winner, in the round of 16 of the Sankt Petersburg tournament in 2021. Irina Begu will be facing a winner of the French Open’s qualifying matches. Two other Romanian players have a chance to win a main draw place: Gabriela Ruse and Cristina Dinu are playing in the last round of the qualifying series against Sara Errani (Italy) and Laura Pigossi (Brazil), respectively. (AMP)

24 May 2024
October 31, 2023

VOTE The Chamber of
Deputies in Bucharest is today voting on the simple motion tabled by the
opposition against Finance Minister Marcel Bolos. The opposition USR has been criticizing
the fiscal measures endorsed by the government of late and has accused Minister
Bolos of having promoted legislative initiatives at the expenses of the Romanian
employees. In response Minister Bolos says the decisions made by the PSD-PNL
coalition government are needed against an accentuated budget imbalance with a
deficit of over 11 billion euros and a public debt reaching 160 billion euros.

COMMISSIONER
Romanian president Klaus Iohannis on Monday held talks with the European
Commission Vice-president for Values and Transparency, Vera Jourova. According
to a Facebook post of the presidential administration, high on the agenda were Romania’s
accession to Schengen, the rule of law and reforms in the country’s legal system,
as well as the support for Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East.
Commissioner Jourova has also met Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and other
ministers for talks over the digitization programmes part of the National Plan
of Recovery and Resilience, AI and fighting misinformation.

SALARIES In a special session today, the government in Bucharest has
endorsed the minimum salaries in the fields of construction, agriculture and
food industry. As of November 1, the minimum gross salary in the field of
construction will see a rise of 14.6%, reaching the equivalent of 9 hundred
euros. The rise will be of 14.53% up to 7 hundred Euros, in the country’s food
and farm industries. According to official data, 590 thousand employees from
agriculture and the food industry have been paid the minimum salary. And the
latest government move is meant to allow the aforementioned categories of employees
to remain unaffected by the elimination of the exemption from paying the health
insurance, which is to come into effect as of November 1. We recall that, a new
series of fiscal-budgetary amendments are to come into effect in Romania, on
November 1.

PLANES A first batch of the
F-16 fighters the Netherlands donates to Ukraine will arrive at the training
center set up in Romania in a fortnight – the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte
has announced. In a videoconference with Ukrainian president Volodymyr
Zelensky, the Dutch official said the present situation in the Middle East must
not and cannot distract the Netherlands from Ukraine’s fight against the
Russian aggression. Reuters recalls that Denmark, Norway and Belgium have pledged
F-16 jet fighters to Ukraine. Romania, the Netherlands and the US giant
Lockheed Martin on August 29 signed a letter of intention for setting up a center
for the training of the F-16 personnel. The aforementioned facility has been
designed as a regional center for NATO countries at the air base in Fetesti,
southern Romania, which will also benefit the Ukrainian pilots.

ISRAEL
Clashes continued in the Gaza Strip last night where explosions and machine gun
fire was heard. Israel has launched hundreds of air strikes in the past days
and its tanks have entered deep into the Palestinian territory, where for a
short period of time they interrupted an evacuation route to the south.
According to international publications, 600 thousand people could still be in
the northern part of the Strip, and the UNO believes that most of them have
taken refuge in the 10 hospitals in the area, which have received evacuation
orders. According to Phillipe Lazzarini, the head of the UN Palestinian refugee
Agency, the Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip were being subjected to
forced displacement and collective punishment. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu has rejected the humanitarian agencies’ appeals for a ceasefire,
arguing this would be tantamount to capitulation to Hamas and terrorism. During
a military operation in Gaza, a young IDF woman held captive by Hamas has been
liberated in what Prime Minister Netanyahu has described an emotional success adding
that all efforts must be made to free all the hostages taken by Hamas.

(bill)

31 October 2023
October 25, 2023 UPDATE

GOVERNMENT The government of
Romania is ready to pass an emergency order on new minimum wages in
constructions, agriculture and the food industry, PM Marcel Ciolacu announced.
He made the statement after a meeting with trade unions and employer
associations. Both in terms of the new minimum salary in constructions (around
EUR 920) and of the ones in agriculture and the food industry (roughly EUR
690), not a penny of the net wages is being cut, Marcel Ciolacu explained. On the other hand, the government drafted an order on
reducing public sector expenditure at the end of this year.

EU The president of
Romania, Klaus Iohannis, takes part on Thursday and Friday in the meeting of
the European Council and the inclusive Euro Summit meeting in Brussels, the
Romanian presidency announced. The agenda of the European Council meeting
includes topics like the situation in Ukraine, updating the Multi-Annual
Financial Framework, economic issues, migration management and the EU foreign
relations, with a focus on the situation in the Middle East, Kosovo and Serbia,
and the developments in the Sahel region. As far as Ukraine is concerned, the
EU leaders will also discuss the Union’s multidimensional support. President Iohannis
will emphasise that Romania will remain a firm supporter of Ukraine and will
plead for further support from the European bloc to that country for as long as
necessary. Mr. Iohannis will also support opening accession negotiations with Ukraine
and the R. of Moldova by the end of this year. At the Euro Summit, the
participants will discuss the economic situation in the EU.

REVOLUTION The case
file concerning the December 1989 anti-communist uprising will be tried on its
substance, the Bucharest Court of Appeals ruled after the magistrates dismissed
all the objections made by the defendants. The decision is not final and may be
challenged. The defendants in the so-called Revolution case include the
former president Ion Iliescu, former deputy PM Gelu Voican Voiculescu and the
retired general Iosif Rus, indicted by military prosecutors for crimes against
humanity committed between December 22 and 30, 1989, when over 1,000 people died and some 3,000
were wounded. Romania was the only Eastern Bloc country where the communist
regime ended in violence and the communist leaders Nicolae and Elena Ceauşescu
were executed.

ARMY DAY In all military units in
Romania and theatres of operations where Romanian troops are deployed, ceremonies
were held on Wednesday to mark the Romanian Army Day. In Bucharest, president
Klaus Iohannis said this is a very complicated period, with global peace and
security threatened by regional conflicts. Europe is facing the worst crisis
since WWII because of Russia’s military aggression in Ukraine, while the
October 7 terrorist attack on Israel might destabilise the Middle East in the
long run, Iohannis added. In turn, PM Marcel Ciolacu said Romania’s NATO
membership is a guarantee that the security of Romanian citizens will never
come under threat. The defence minister Angel Tîlvăr pointed out that the
Romanian Army has risen to NATO standards in many respects, and added that
earmarking 2% of GDP since 2017 and 2.5% of GDP this year to the defence sector
enabled the implementation of ambitious procurement programmes. Meanwhile, the
Romanian troops’ participation in UN, EU and NATO missions over the past
decades has strengthened Romania’s security profile, Angel Tîlvăr added.

ISRAEL Israel has demanded the resignation of the UN Secretary General, Antonio
Guterres, over accusations of justifying terrorism and the crimes committed by
Hamas. Guterres said in a Security Council meeting that the attacks of Hamas on
Israel did not happen without reason. He made it clear, however, that the
suffering of the Palestinians in what he called 56 years of suffocating
occupation cannot justify the horrific attacks by Hamas, just as these
attacks cannot justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people. On
Wednesday, Israel accepted a request from the US to delay its invasion of Gaza
for the time being, so that the US may bring missile defence in the region, US
and Israeli officials announced, quoted by the Wall Street Journal. The United
States says it will work with China to de-escalate the situation in the Middle
East. The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, said he would work with
the Chinese foreign minister, who is travelling to Washington at the end of this
week, to prevent the conflict from expanding. The president of France, Emmanuel
Macron, Wednesday concluded his two-day tour to the Middle East, which included
Egypt, Israel, the West Bank and Jordan. His message was unambiguous, calling
for preventing a spill-over of the conflict, for freeing the hostages taken by
the terrorist group Hamas and for aid for the Palestinians in Gaza. (AMP)

25 October 2023
September 28, 2023 UPDATE

Salaries – The gross minimum wage in Romania will be increased, as of October 1, from 3,000 lei (600 Euros) to 3,300 lei (660 Euros), according to the decision adopted on Thursday by the Romanian Government. The measure will benefit 1.8 million employees. By increasing the minimum wage, the authorities aim at stimulating employment, increasing the purchasing power of employees and reducing illegal work. It will also benefit other social categories whose incomes are calculated according to the value of the minimum wage, such as people with disabilities and those who earn money from independent activities and from intellectual property rights. (…) The Social-Democratic Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu pointed out that the increase in the minimum wage in agriculture, construction and the food industry will be postponed, because the latest calculations show that employees would lose money when they pay health insurance contributions.

Forum – The Euro-Atlantic Resilience Center (E-ARC) in Bucharest is hosting the second edition of the Euro-Atlantic Resilience Forum on Thursday and Friday, attended by Romanian and foreign experts as well as EU and NATO officials. According to organizers, this years theme is “Resilience at Sea and its Impact on Land”, seeking to answer security challenges impacting the maritime sector with significant consequences, which in most cases require concerted and global action. Each panel will be held simultaneously in Bucharest, New York, Brussels, Washington, Kyiv, Ljubljana and Lublin. E-ARC is a center of excellence in the field of resilience, a partner of NATO and the EU, which acts to the benefit of these organizations and member or partner states.

Conference – Senate Speaker Nicolae Ciucă is attending the European Conference of Presidents of Parliament, representing the 46 members of the Council of Europe, an event hosted by Dublin, Ireland. Nicolae Ciucă said the meeting will address such topics as the fallout from Russias war in Ukraine, the role of national Parliaments in the reconstruction of Ukraine, challenges to democracy in times of instability and equality and diversity in public representation. According to the Romanian official, Russias unprovoked and unwarranted aggression against Ukraine has led to profound changes in European geopolitics, particularly in the fields of economy, energy and trade. “The Black Sea has become an area of increased interest to the worlds superpowers, and Romania finds itself in a strategic position of being the only member of both the EU and NATO that has land and maritime borders with Ukraine”, Nicolae Ciucă also pointed out.

Visit – NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, on an unannounced visit to Kyiv, said on Thursday that Ukrainian forces were “gradually gaining ground” in their counteroffensive against Russian forces. He announced that NATO now had over-arching framework contracts in place with arms companies worth 2.4 billion euros ($2.53 billion) for ammunition. Stoltenberg said such contracts would allow NATO members to replenish their depleted stockpiles while also continuing to provide Ukraine with ammunition, a key factor in the war. On the other hand, NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg also condemned Russian strikes near Ukraines border with NATO member Romania. He said there was no evidence such strikes were a deliberate attack on Romania but branded them “reckless” and “destabilizing”. In turn, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky insisted that NATO members should provide Ukraine with more anti-aircraft systems, given the fear of a new Russian bombing campaign on Ukrainian energy infrastructures as winter approaches. The Ukrainian army is continuing its counter-offensive launched in June in Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk provinces in the south and east, through which it is trying to reach the Sea of Azov to isolate Moscows troops from Crimea by land, while the Russian army attacks to the north.

Brancusi — The exhibition “Brâncusi: Romanian sources and universal perspectives” was presented to the press, on Thursday, at the National Art Museum in Timisoara (west). It is the first exhibition of the artist in his native country, after more than 50 years, and it opens to the public on Saturday, as an integral part of the cultural program “Timişoara 2023 – European Capital of Culture”. Visitors can see sculptures such as Măiastra, Mademoiselle Pogany, Childs Head, The Kiss, Prayer or Milestone. The event will end on January 28, 2024. The last Romanian exhibition dedicated to the great sculptor was organized in 1970. (VP, LS)

28 September 2023
June 30, 2023

PRICES The government of Romania is discussing today an emergency
order introducing temporary measures to curb the excessive rise of foodstuff
prices. Under the new regulation, food processors may charge a maximum 20%
mark-up on production costs. The combined mark-up throughout the distribution
chain, regardless of the number of distributors, may not exceed 5%, while
retailers may charge an additional maximum 20% on purchase prices plus
overheads and direct expenses. The emergency order will be valid for 90 days
after endorsement.

EU Europe’s relations with China
are on the agenda of Friday’s talks at the European Council meeting in Brussels.
Some member states believe the West relies too much on an undemocratic country
that has close ties with Russia. The invasion of Ukraine highlighted the West’s
dependence on Russian oil and gas, and there are concerns that a similar
mistake is being made with respect to China, the source of many consumer goods,
the BBC notes. On Thursday, the first day of the Council meeting, the situation
in Ukraine and Russia was in the focus on the talks. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent, EU leaders have undertaken
to help Ukraine in the long run to defend itself against Russia’s military
aggression. The meeting was also attended by the NATO secretary general Jens
Stoltenberg, with the president of Ukraine Volodymyr
Zelenskyy joining in via video link. The
president of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, said both the EU and NATO must provide
proportional support to the R. of Moldova as well, which is waiting to take the
next step towards European integration. As regards the transit of Ukrainian
grain, which has affected Romanian farmers, the president says Romania may
provide an answer to Kyiv’s request for more intensive use of the Danube as a
transit option.

SALARIES Teaching staff in the Romanian public
undergraduate education sector will receive more benefits under the new
collective bargaining agreement signed on Thursday. The announcement was made
by the education minister, Ligia Deca. On the other hand, Sanitas trade union
announced they have secured pay raises for public healthcare staff.

PENSIONS The Constitutional Court of Romania will discuss on 26 July
a notification filed by the High Court of Cassation and Justice against the
scrapping of special pensions and the law prohibiting the payment of both
public sector salaries and pensions to the same person at the same time. Both
bills were passed on Wednesday in Parliament and are being checked for
compliance with the Constitution, before being sent for promulgation by
president Klaus Iohannis. Supreme Court judges decided to notify the
Constitutional Court with respect to the two bills, which they claim violates
several of their rights.

SUPPORT The PM of Spain Pedro Sanchez travels to Kyiv on Saturday to
reiterate the EU’s unwavering support for Ukraine, on the first day of Spain’s
rotating presidency of the EU Council, 1 July. The announcement was made by the
president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Ukraine is an EU candidate country
and is hoping to open accession negotiations at the end of this year.

EUROPEAN GAMES Romania is placed 13th in the nations
ranking at the European Games in Krakow-Malopolska (Poland), 9 days into the
competition. Romanian athletes have so far won 14 medals (5 gold, 4 silver and
5 bronze). Cyclist Vlad Dascălu in the mountain bike event, athlete Claudia
Bobocea in the 1,500m race, Bernadette Szocs in the table tennis final, as well
as Kinga Barabasi and Apor Gyorgydeak in teqball are Romania’s gold medallists.
Silver medals went to athletes Bianca Ghelber in the hammer throw event and
Daniela Stanciu in the high jump, to rower Cătălin Chirilă in the 500m canoe
race and to Ilinca Pantiş in the saber event. Ştefan Comănescu in the 67 kg kumite,
Andrea Miklos in the 400 m race, Mălina Călugăreanu in the foil event, Ovidiu
Ionescu/Bernadette Szocs in the mixed doubles and Elizabeta Samara in the women’s
table tennis competitions, respectively, won bronze medals. Romania takes part
in this year’s edition of the European Games with 150 athletes in 18 sports. (AMP)

30 June 2023
May 31, 2023 UPDATE

EDUCATION The government’s new salary offer for teachers will be
presented to unions in an expedited procedure, so as to allow teachers to
decide on whether to continue the strike, the education union leaders announced
at the end of Wednesday’s negotiations. The government proposed a monthly gross
EUR 200 payment to teaching staff and EUR 80 for non-teaching staff in the
sector. An emergency order will also be passed, allowing entry-level teachers
to have a starting salary equal to the national average gross wage. The all-out
strike in Romanian undergraduate education has reached its 10th day.

MOLDOVA The Republic of Moldova Thursday hosts the European
Political Community Summit, attended by 50 heads of state and government. The
European Commission is represented by its president Ursula von der Leyen and
the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. The most important subjects on the
agenda of the summit are security, stability and cooperation in Europe. Also attending will be the
president of Romania, Klaus Iohannis. On
Tuesday, the EU Council decided to double the macro-financial aid for the
Republic of Moldova from EUR 150 to 295 million.

POLICE On Wednesday in Romania prison officers protested salary
levels and the working conditions. Penitentiary police workers say they work
extensive extra hours in order to make up for personnel shortages, and oppose
the planned increase of retirement age in the sector. Trade union
representatives had a meeting with the justice minister, who said the dialogue
was constructive and promised that the rights of prison officers will be
respected. Cătălin Predoiu added that in the following two years at most, up to
2,000 officers will be recruited in order to fill the vacancies in the penitentiary
system.

CHAMPIONSHIP The 2023 World Rescue Championship takes place in
Craiova, southern Romania, between June 1 and 4. This is the largest such event
of the International Canine Federation, with more than 60 search and rescue
dogs taking part, from 10 countries (Austria, Belgium, Estonia, France, Italy,
Japan, Romania, Slovenia, Ukraine and the Netherlands). The world’s top 19
teams will compete in various sections, including surface search for missing
persons, obedience and dexterity, and search for victims in the rubble.
Craiova is the first city in the world to have organised five World Rescue
Championships (2009, 2016, 2021, 2022, and 2023).

GRAIN EU agriculture ministers meeting in the AGRIFISH council have
not managed to unblock 100 million euros worth of aid for farmers affected by
Ukraine’s export of cheap grain. Romania is one of the five countries that may
benefit from the aid and it stands to receive around EUR 30 million. The
European commissioner for agriculture Ianusz Wojciechowski gave assurances that
the aid will be unblocked and the situation monitored. He said he was not in
favour of using the EU budget to buy Ukrainian grain to be supplied to the
world food programme because the cost would be three times that of the cereals
themselves. He believes the money would be better used, in the long term, to
improve the infrastructure, for example that of Romania, and said he would have
talks in this regard with the European commissioner for transport and
infrastructure Adina Vălean.

TENNIS The only Romanian
athlete left in the Roland Garros competition, Irina Begu, Wednesday defeated
Italy’s Sara Errani, in 2 sets, 6 – 3, 6 – 0. On Tuesday, Sorana Cirstea was
kicked out of the competition by another Italian player, Jasmine Paolini. Also
on Tuesday, the Canadian athlete Bianca Andreescu won against Victoria
Azarenka (Belarus) in 3 sets. (AMP)

31 May 2023
May 22, 2023

STRIKE An all-out strike has been initiated today in Romanian public
undergraduate education. According to trade unions, taking part are over 150,000
teachers and 70,000 non-teaching staff, disgruntled with the government’s
salary policies. A two-hour token strike in higher education is also scheduled
for today.

EDUCATION The new undergraduate and higher education bills are discussed and voted on as of today in the Senate, the
decision-making parliamentary body in this respect.
At the end of last week’s talks in the Senate’s committee on education, the
representatives of students and parents said that over 90% of their requests were
answered in the new legislation. In turn, the religious denominations welcomed
the amendments to the new bills. With respect to the undergraduate education,
the National Liberal Party, the Social Democratic Party and the Democratic
Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, in power, say the bill meets students’
educational needs, supports teachers’ career development and fosters quality and
equity in the education system. The draft law includes measures to enhance
safety in schools and to ensure the access of children with special needs to
regular classes. The opposition, on the other hand, believes these important issues
noted by civil society are not solved.

VISIT The president of Germany, Frank-Walter
Steinmeier, will make an official visit to Romania on the 24th to 26th
May, at the invitation of president Klaus Iohannis. According
to the Romanian presidency, the visit is a major landmark for the excellent
Romanian-German relations. Talks will focus on extending and deepening
bilateral cooperation in political, security and economic areas. The Romanian
presidency also mentions that Germany is a reliable ally of Romania,
contributing to the security in the region, and also the country’s main trade
partner and the second-largest foreign investor in the national economy. The
two heads of state will also exchange opinions on current security developments
and on consolidating the defence posture in NATO’s eastern flank. During
his visit to Romania, the president of Germany will also travel to Sibiu
(centre) and Timisoara (west).

DIPLOMACY The Romanian foreign
minister Bogdan Aurescu takes part today in the meeting of the EU Foreign
Affairs Council in Brussels. The EU foreign ministers discuss measures to
mitigate the effects of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. According to the
Romanian foreign ministry, Bogdan Aurescu will reiterate Romania’s firm, multidimensional
and continuing support for Ukraine and will express hopes that an agreement
will be reached as soon as possible on the 8th support package for
the Ukrainian air forces under the EU Peace Facility. Minister Aurescu will
also highlight the importance of keeping pressure on Russia by consolidating
sanctions, and will reiterate the idea of setting up a special international tribunal
for the crime of aggression to prosecute Russian crimes of aggression during
the war in Ukraine.

TECHNOLOGY Bucharest Tech
Week, the largest technology and innovation trade fair in Central and Eastern
Europe, has begun in Bucharest today. The event brings together over 70 speakers,
national and international tech experts, and 1,500 professionals from over 100
companies operating in various fields. The first 5 days are devoted to
conferences on innovation, HR, retail, Java and Software Architecture, under
the heading Business Summits. The largest technology and innovation
exhibition, Tech Expo, will also be open to the public over the weekend of 26 May.

GREECE The right-of-centre party headed by Greece’s incumbent PM,
Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has won Sunday’s parliamentary election, but failed to get
absolute majority. New Democracy won over 41% of the votes, and will have 146 seats
in parliament. Its left-of-centre rivals, Syriza party, won 21% of the votes
and 71 seats in parliament. The 3% threshold has been reached by 5 of the 36 parties
that took part in the election. Kyriakos Mitsotakis ruled out a coalition
government. Unless the winning parties manage to form a government, early
elections will be held on 25 June.

FOOTBALL Farul Constanţa
won Romania’s football championships, after defeating FCSB 3-2, on home turf
on Sunday night, in the 9th round of the Super League. Farul managed a spectacular come-back in the championship final,
after FCSB had been leading 2-0. (AMP)

22 May 2023
17.01.2023

MCV – La levée à succès du Mécanisme de vérification et
de coopération sur la justice roumaine devrait être suivie par l’adhésion du
pays à l’Espace Schengen, a fait savoir le chef de l’Etat roumain, Klaus
Iohannis, mardi, lors de la rencontre annuelle des chefs des diplomaties
accrédités à Bucarest. Et Klaus Iohannis d’ajouter que la Roumanie répond à
tous les critères d’adhésion et qu’elle fera toutes les démarches nécessaires
pour obtenir une décision favorable en ce sens. Notre pays fait sans nul doute
partie de la solution aux défis de sécurité auxquels l’Europe se confronte
actuellement a précisé le leader de Cotroceni. Et lui d’ajotuer que Bucarest a
géré d’une manière exemplaire la situation créée à la frontière avec l’Ukraine
ce qui a renforcé son rôle au niveau régional, européen et mondial.

OTAN – Ce mardi, plusieurs avions de surveillance de l’OTAN
arrivent en Roumanie. Les appareils de l’Airborne Warning and Control System
(Awacs) habituellement basés près d’Aix-la-Chapelle à l’ouest de l’Allemagne,
doivent arriver à Bucarest mardi pour soutenir la présence renforcée de
l’alliance dans la région et surveiller les activités militaires russes.
Depuis l’invasion de l’Ukraine, les Awacs ont patrouillé dans le ciel de
l’Europe de l’Est et de la Mer Baltique pour identifier les avions russes qui
approchent des frontières alliées. Trois de ces avions seront stationnés dans
la base de la force aérienne roumaine d’Otopeni. Près de 180 officiers
militaires y seront également déployés. La mission est censée durer plusieurs
semaines. Les appareils ne sont pas dotés d’armement, mais seulement de
systèmes de surveillance censés leur permettre de détecter des avions à des
centaines de kilomètres de distance.

Salariés – La Roumanie recense presque 6,7 millions de contrats de travail
figurant dans le Registre national du personnel, de 16% de plus qu’en 2021,
soit un record des dix dernières années. Le nombre de salariés approche quant à
lui, les 5,8 millions de personnes, le chiffre le plus important de la dernière
décennie, a fait savoir le ministre du Travail, Marius Budăi.

Electricité – En Roumanie, la consommation d’électricité
a baissé durant les onze premiers mois de l’année dernière, de 6% dans le
domaine industriel et de 9% au sein de la population, informe l’Institut
national de la Statistique. La quantité d’électricité produite par les
hydrocentrales a chuté de presque 20%, tout comme celle produite par les
centrales thermiques ou nucléaires. En revanche, la Roumanie annonce une croissance
de sa production d’électricité éolienne et solaire produites par des installations
photovoltaïques.

Culture – 2023 sera l’année des
événements culturels roumains importants, a fait savoir le ministre de la
Culture, Lucian Romascanu, dans un entretien sur Radio Roumanie. Et pour cause.
Le 17 février prochain, ce sera le coup d’envoi du Programme « Timisoara,
capitale européenne de la culture 2023 », avec plus de 50 événements
prévus sur place. Parmi ceux-ci, quelques concerts dans le cadre de la 26ème
édition du Festival international de musique « George Enescu ». 2023
offrira au public roumain l’occasion de participer à une nouvelle édition des
Festival de théâtre de Sibiu et de Bucarest, a précisé le ministre de la
Culture qui a annoncé des enveloppes consistantes pour financer une série
d’événements culturels indépendants.

Tennis – La joueuse roumaine de tennis, Patricia Maria
Tig rencontre ce mardi, au tableau principal de l’Open australien, tournoi de
Grand Chelem de l’année qui a débuté lundi, à Melbourne, la Chinoise, Shuai
Zhang. Le duel entre Sorana Cîrstea, de Roumanie et Yulia Putintseva, du Kazakhstan
a été suspendu en raison de la météo, tandis que le match entre la Roumaine Irina
Begu et l’Américaine, Elizabeth Mandlik a été annulé.

Météo – Le temps devient doux en Roumanie, avec des
températures allant de 6 à 17 degrés, bien supérieures aux normales
saisonnières. Des précipitations mixtes touchent les régions de montagne. Il
neige en altitude, à plus de 1700 mètres. Le vent souffle fort presque partout
en Roumanie, avec plus de 100 km/heure sur les sommets des Carpates
méridionales. Une alerte jaune au vent très fort est en vigueur jusqu’à jeudi,
dans l’après-midi dans plusieurs départements de l’ouest, le nord-ouest et le
sud-est. 9 degré et du soleil à midi, à Bucarest.

17 January 2023
Les craintes des employeurs

Nous visons des temps compliqués. Nos vies basculent et
la prédictibilité n’existe presque plus. Une crise en provoque une autre, puis
une autre et ainsi de suite. Depuis trois ans, notre quotidien se décline en
mauvaises nouvelles : pandémie, crise énergétique, guerre, inflation et la
liste pourrait continuer. La situation demeure aussi imprévisible sur le marché
de l’emploi. Après la Grande Démission, parue en 2021, aux Etats-Unis, un autre
phénomène fait irruption : la Démission silencieuse (Silent quiting). La
tendance, née sur TikTok, vise à en faire moins dans le cadre professionnel,
afin de préserver sa santé mentale. Sur un marché du travail très tendu dans la
plupart des secteurs, les salariés sont en position de force pour imposer leur
vision aux employeurs. Ainsi, ils démissionnent rapidement au moindre
inconvénient. Mis en place et privilégié durant les années de pandémie, le
travail à distance se perpétue. Même si les employeurs réclament le retour de
leurs salariés sur place, ces derniers ne se laissent pas faire et insistent pour
travailler à domicile. De plus en plus d’entreprises se voient contraintes de
respecter les doléances de leurs employés, de peur que ces derniers ne
démissionnent. Ana Călugăru, responsable de la Communication chez la
plate-forme de recrutement e-jobs, constate une recrudescence impressionnante
du nombre de recherches d’emplois en ligne, parallèlement à la hausse des
prétentions formulées par les candidats :

« Rien qu’en
septembre, nous avons recensé un nombre record de recherches menées en ligne,
soit 130.000, mais aussi un nombre accru d’emplois permettant le télétravail.
Cela signifie que nous avons à faire à un nombre croissant de candidats qui
s’intéressent à ce type de travail, mais aussi que les entreprises sont très
attentives aux critères qui pourraient attirer de potentiels salariés. Voilà
pourquoi les employeurs restent souples et ouverts à l’idée de permettre le
travail à domicile. Il est pourtant vrai qu’à long terme, la plupart des
sociétés souhaiteraient mettre en place un style de travail hybride, avec un
certain nombre d’heures travaillées sur place et d’autres à distance. Les
employeurs ont besoin que leurs salariés se déplacent au travail pour des
moments-clé, telles des conférences, des réunions, etc. Comme vous le voyez,
nous n’en avons pas terminé avec la mode du travail à distance ou isolé, pas du
tout. Les chiffres sont très parlants. D’ailleurs, d’ici la fin de l’année, on
s’attend à ce que ce type de travail soit davantage répandu, tout comme le
nombre de ceux qui le réclament ».

Sur l’ensemble des principaux domaines de recrutement, ce
sont les secteurs de la vente, des services clients et des technologies de l’information
qui ont le vent en poupe. Ana Călugăru nous en dit plus :

« Le
mois de septembre nous a clairement montré que sur l’ensemble des secteurs
professionnels, ceux qui suscitent le plus l’intérêt des candidats sont la
vente, les services, les centres d’appel et les technologies de l’information.
Tous ces domaines sont très convoités, d’abord parce qu’ils offrent toute une
panoplie d’emplois, ce qui augmente les opportunités de recrutement. Ensuite, parce
qu’ils s’adressent, ne serait-ce que les trois premiers domaines que je viens
de mentionner, à un panel très large de candidats, aussi bien à des jeunes sans
expérience qu’à des personnes expérimentées. Quant aux technologies de l’information,
ce secteur met pas mal de bénéfices sur la table, notamment la promesse de plus
gros salaires sur le marché ».

Aux dires d’Ana Călugăru, on constate dernièrement une
tendance de plus en plus pointue chez les entreprises à privilégier les
critères de sélection des candidats avant leur savoir-faire ou leurs habilités
techniques.

« Les
employeurs qui sont persuadés que les compétences professionnelles s’apprennent
aussi sur place se font de plus en plus nombreux. C’est pourquoi ils sont prêts
à fermer les yeux devant les potentielles lacunes techniques des candidats,
tout en restant vigilants à d’autres critères : ils ne tolèrent pas les
blasés, ceux qui n’ont pas la curiosité d’apprendre, qui refusent le travail en
équipe. Les employeurs sont devenus très attentifs à ce que les Américains
appellent les « soft skills », c’est-à-dire aux compétences douces ou
personnelles, aux capacités de fonctionner en équipe, à l’attitude positive, au
désir d’apprendre. A l’heure où l’on parle, toutes ces qualités sont devenues
précieuses pour les employeurs et passent avant le niveau de carrière ou
d’expérience du candidat »

L’année dernière, le monde occidental a été frappé par la
Grande Démission, un phénomène suite auquel les paramètres du rapport
employeur-employé ont changé. Las de gagner difficilement leurs vies et en
quête de conditions de travail plus souples, d’une meilleure rémunération et de
meilleurs avantages sociaux, les gens ont commencé à démissionner en masse.
C’est ce qui a entraîné, bien évidemment, une crise de la main d’œuvre. Cette
année, un autre phénomène semble s’emparer du marché du travail, et effrayer
les entreprises : celui de Démission silencieuse. Que signifie ce syntagme
et pourquoi est-il source d’inquiétude ? Ana Călugăru, directrice de Communication
chez e-job, explique :

« On parle de moins en moins de la Grande
Démission, notamment parce que son impact est plus réduit que l’année dernière.
En revanche, c’est le phénomène de la Démission silencieuse qui nous inquiète
actuellement puisqu’il touche une masse salariale qui décide de ne faire que le
strict minimum afin de ne pas se faire licencier. Cela vient d’une sorte de
frustration cumulée depuis des années, mais aussi du désir des gens de trouver
un équilibre entre leurs vies professionnelle et privée. On n’observe plus de
démissions en masse, peut-être aussi en raison d’un contexte économique marqué
par les incertitudes. On constate que la situation économique est loin d’être
facile et du coup, on préfère attendre et éviter les mouvements brusques sur le
marché de l’emploi. » a conclu Ana Călugăru, directrice de
Communication chez e-job.

(Trad : Ioana Stancescu)

11 October 2022
25.07.2022

Sécheresse – 106.389 hectares de 20 départements de Roumanie sont sévèrement touchés par la sécheresse, informe le Ministère roumain de l’Agriculture. Il n’y a plus d’eau pour les irrigations dans les départements de Teleorman, Olt et Dolj, dans le sud de la Roumanie, après une forte baisse du niveau des eaux du Danube, a annoncé le ministre de l’agriculture, Petre Daea. Dans les régions irriguées, la végétation est en bon état et les cultures se portent bien. Dans ce contexte, les autorités accélèrent les travaux d’investissements pour réhabiliter le système national d’irrigations, mais aussi les systèmes censés transférer l’eau du Danube vers les stations de pompage des départements touchés par la sécheresse, précise le ministre Daea, tout en affirmant qu’à l’heure où l’on parle, la reconnaissance d’un état de calamité pour des raisons de sécheresse ne s’imposait pas.

Covid – En Roumanie, le nombre des contaminations au coronavirus est à la hausse. Presque 5000 nouveaux cas enregistrés en 24 heures ont été annoncés lundi, dont la plupart sont signalés dans les départements de Cluj, Ilfov, Constanta et Brasov. 3400 personnes positives sont hospitalisées en Roumanie dont 204 dans des unités de soins intensifs. Le bilan pandémique s’est également alourdi de 5 décès associés.Corruption -La Cour d’Appel de Bucarest a condamné lundi l’ancien chef de la Sécurité sociale de Roumanie à six ans de prison ferme dans un dossier de corruption. Lucian Duţă est accusé par les procureurs anticorruption d’avoir touché 6,3 millions d’euros de pot-de-vin pour accorder à deux sociétés de logiciel un contrat public. La Cour d’Appel a maintenu en place la peine décidée en novembre 2020, par le Tribunal de Bucarest. L’instance a également confirmé la décision du tribunal de confisquer à Lucian Duţă la somme de 6,3 millions d’euros.

Visa Waiver – Le secrétaire roumain chargé des Affaires
stratégiques, Iulian Fota, a rencontré lundi, à Bucarest, Kelli Ann Burriesci,
adjointe du sous-secrétaire américain chargé de la Sécurité nationale. En
tournée en Europe, la responsable américaine a discuté par la suite avec le
chef de la diplomatie de Bucarest, Bogdan Aurescu, des possibilités de
renforcement de la coopération bilatérale afin de permettre l’inclusion de la
Roumanie dans le programme d’exemption de visas, Visa Waiver. Il s’agit d’un
objectif politique de premier rang pour Bucarest, a affirmé le ministre
roumain, tout en insistant sur l’importance de la campagne publique qui sera
lancée à ce sujet.

Emplois – Cinq salariés roumains sur dix ont changé d’emploi ces deux dernières années, selon un sondage publié par une plateforme de recrutement enligne. Nombre de candidats souhaitent que leur nouvel emploi ne soit plus une source de stress et qu’il leur apporte davantage de bénéfices. Quatre personnes sur dix ayant changé de job l’ont fait motivées par un salaire plus important, 27% ont quitté leur entreprise dans le contexte d’une vague de licenciements, alors que 3% ont été obligées suite au refus de l’employeur de permettre le télétravail. A présent, 35% des personnes interviewées sont à la recherche d’un nouvel emploi et se présentent à des interviews alors que seulement 21% sont complètement mécontentes de leur job actuel. Pour conclure, les Roumains à la recherche d’un nouvel emploi souhaitent un salaire plus important, la possibilité de faire du télétravail, des bénéfices supplémentaires ou la possibilité d’être relocalisés dans un autre pays.

Energie – Des capacités de production de plus de 3 500 Mégawatts d’énergie renouvelable seront installées en Roumanie dans la période qui suit. Il s’agit tant de centrales solaires avec des panneaux photovoltaïques qu’éoliennes, selon les chiffres fournies par une société de consulting dans ce secteur. Près de 700 projets ont été déposés sur la plateforme mise à la disposition par le biais du Programme national de relance et de résilience. Le secrétaire général des patronats du secteur des énergies renouvelables, Mihai Verşescu, a déclaré que des investissements dans ce secteur étaient nécessaires mais que les hommes d’affaires étaient assez réticents à cause des nombreux changements législatifs opérés. Il a souligné que les sources de financement existaient toujours, mais que des lois censées offrir de la prédictibilité étaient également nécessaires.

Baccalauréat – Lundi fut le dernier jour d’inscription à la session août – septembre de l’examen de Baccalauréat, en Roumanie. Conformément au calendrier du ministère de l’éducation, les examens devraient commencer le 16 août par l’épreuve écrite de langue et littérature roumaine et finir le 29 août par l’évaluation des compétences dans une langue de circulation internationale. Les premiers résultats seront affichés le 31 août et les résultats finaux après les contestations le 3 septembre. Pour réussir leur Bac, les lycées roumains doivent décrocher au moins 5 sur 10 à chacune des épreuves individuelles et une moyenne générale de 6 sur 10 tout au moins.

Tennis – La joueuse roumaine de tennis, Irina Begu, a remporté le tournoi WTA 250 de Palerme après une victoire contre l’italienne Lucia Bronzetti par 6-2, 6-2. La sportive roumaine âgée de 31 ans est désormais 45e dans le classement WTA. Une seule la Roumaine, à savoir Irina Spârlea avait réussi à remporter déjà l’Open de Palerme en 1994 et 1995.

Météo – En Roumanie, les températures resteront élevées durant les prochaines 24 heures. Les météorologues ont lancé une vigilance jaune à la canicule en vigueur jusqu’à jeudi, dans le centre, l’est et l’ouest du territoire. L’indice humidex sera de plus de 80, tandis que les températures maximales iront de 33 à 40 degrés. Une alerte orange à la grande chaleur sera en vigueur mardi dans le sud et l’ouest du pays. Pendant la nuit, les températures ne chuteront pas en dessous de 20 degrés.

25 July 2022