Labor organizations in Romania contemplate a nationwide work stoppage in response to proposed fiscal restraints
Romania's Main Trade Union Confederations Plan Coordinated Protests Against Government's Austerity Measures
Romania's main trade union confederations are gearing up for a series of coordinated protests against the government's new fiscal and austerity measures. The decisions to protest were made during a meeting of union leaders evaluating the impact of these policies.
The unions, representing various sectors such as central and local administration, education, forestry, transport, agriculture, and finance, held separate demonstrations throughout July. These demonstrations were against wage cuts, tax increases, and deteriorating working conditions.
The key demands of the unions include the withdrawal of austerity measures affecting education and public administration. In education, trade unions representing teachers and school staff strongly oppose measures such as raising teachers’ weekly workload by two hours, merging hundreds of schools, increasing class sizes, cutting hourly pay, and imposing heavier administrative duties on school leaders. They warn these changes will lead to layoffs among auxiliary and administrative staff, worsen underfunding of higher education and research institutions, and call for the resignation of the education minister.
In public administration, unions demand withdrawal of the government’s plan to cut 40,000 jobs in local public administration, seeing it as a second wave of austerity after recent fiscal tightening that already increased VAT and burdened the population.
Education unions have warned they might boycott the autumn Baccalaureate exams and block the start of the school year if demands are not met. They also plan a nationwide rally with over 30,000 members on September 8, the first day of the academic year, to demand a reversal of these austerity measures.
The union confederations are considering a general strike in response to the government’s new fiscal and austerity measures. Representatives from CNSLR-Frăţia, CNS Cartel Alfa, CSDR, and CSN Meridian, as well as other unions, agreed to draft a unified set of demands.
Weekly protests at prefecture offices are planned to begin on August 20. The union leaders announced a signature collection campaign to authorize a general strike. The coordinated actions in August mark an escalation in labour opposition to the austerity package.
While not specific demands against austerity in the search results, the 2025 OECD report highlights recent legislation aimed at strengthening collective bargaining and social dialogue in Romania, which unions would likely seek to have respected during these dispute processes.
The unions are calling for proper impact studies and meaningful negotiation, threatening strikes and protests if their demands are ignored. The planned protests include a general strike, which is still under consideration. These demands will be submitted to county-level unions and forwarded to local parliamentarians. The coordinated protest actions in August are being prepared by Romania's main trade union confederations, and the planned demonstrations will incorporate the education federations' protests scheduled for September 8.
Politics and general news in Romania are hot topics as Romania's main trade union confederations plan to escalate their opposition to the government's austerity measures through coordinated protests and potentially a general strike. The unions are demanding a reversal of the measures, particularly those targeting education and public administration, and are calling for proper impact studies and meaningful negotiation. Recently, the OECD highlighted legislation aimed at strengthening collective bargaining and social dialogue in Romania, which the unions seek to have respected during these dispute processes.
