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In the midst of a pandemic and health crisis of epic proportions, we learned that the largest pay increase as of January 1 of next year will not be given to doctors and nurses, but to soldiers.
Photo: EPA-EFE / KOCA SULEJMANOVICWhat the new Army Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic announced a few days ago was confirmed yesterday by Finance Minister Sinisa Mali that the Army will receive an additional increase of up to 10 percent.
By the way, it was previously determined that as of January 1, health workers will receive a five percent increase, and others in the public sector will receive a 3.5 percent increase, and from April their salaries will increase by five percent in total.
However, a proposal suddenly appeared that seemed express and adopted to give soldiers a 10 percent raise.
Stefanović previously announced that the increase will not be linear, but the largest increases will be awarded to those with the lowest salaries and the lowest to officers.
It is interesting that yesterday’s announcement from the Ministry of Finance nowhere mentions the increase in army salaries, but does mention the increase in salaries of health employees in the last year, but not future increases.
The Fiscal Council says that the budget proposal for next year, which they evaluated, did not contemplate this increase in salaries in the army, so it is expected that it will be added to the amendments.
The council considered that the general salary increase in the public sector of just under five percent per year next year is too high, considering the economic situation and the fall in GDP this year.
The Council also says that wage analysis should be done in the public sector, and then, based on that, determine how much someone should increase and not increase ad hoc.
“While on the one hand pensions follow the rule, and even now when they grow faster than the economy, it will balance out later, there is no such mechanism for wages. “If wages now exceed economic possibilities, there is no mechanism to return them, in relation to GDP, just as there is no mechanism to determine where wages should be increased and where not,” they say in the Danas Fiscal Council.
According to previous analyzes by this public finance control body, salaries in the army and police are already relatively higher, while in health, for example, they are underestimated.
For the economist Petar Đukić, it is clear that this sudden increase in military salaries is not a macroeconomic issue, but a political one.
“I don’t know what the reason is, perhaps to create the illusion that the patriotism of military security will rise to a higher level, but I don’t see how that will help our security in the pandemic.” If something has to be increased in the budget for next year, it is the costs of health, treatment, vaccines, additional capacities … In addition, investments must be made in ecology, reduction of pollution, filters, energy efficiency and finally in infrastructure, but this must be harmonized with budgetary possibilities. . By the way, I am amazed at the amount of unfounded optimism with which the budget for next year was drawn up. I’m talking about the plan for real growth to be six percent in 2021, without even knowing how much the decline will be this year, and with huge unknowns and a high probability that we will have the crown for at least another nine months, and such. once a year. In such circumstances, he would give up the pension increase according to the Swiss formula and make an agreement to increase the pensions by the amount of inflation and pay the rest in installments when the situation calms down. Therefore, this increase of 10 per cent is not justified ”, estimates Đukić and adds that the payment of bonuses to health workers should be maintained.
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