The Solidarity Health Federation has decided to notify the Government of its intention to trigger a general strike in protest against the economic and social policies of the Executive.
The union members cite, as the main legal basis, the bill initiated by the Government to reduce payroll expenses by 10%, which would lead to the loss of certain rights provided for in the collective labor agreement. Health Minister Alexandru Rogobete argues against the 10% reduction in medical staff income.
According to a statement sent on Tuesday, the Coordinating Council of the Federation, meeting on Monday, decided to officially notify the Government of the intention to declare a general strike in healthcare.
"Legally, the reason is the bill on reducing payroll expenses by 10% initiated by the Government, which would result in the loss of certain salary rights provided for in the collective labor agreement at the healthcare sector level," the Federation states.
Cumulative salary losses
The union members argue that the strike is further justified by the accumulated salary losses since last year, which could lead to a decrease in real wages of approximately 30% by the end of 2026.
"The strike is further justified by the wide range of salary losses suffered by healthcare employees since last year," Federation representatives state.
They point to the cumulative effect of inflation and the elimination of meal allowances. Regarding inflation, the union members state that it has led to a decrease in real wages by approximately 10% in 2025, to which at least 5% would be added during this year. In addition, the meal allowance was eliminated at the beginning of 2026 for a significant number of healthcare employees.
Impact on over 160,000 hospital employees
The Federation warns that reducing funding for salary influences in public hospitals would directly affect approximately 162,000 employees in around 312 healthcare units.
"All these salary reductions come at a time when, according to the provisions of the Collective Labor Agreement, healthcare employees are guaranteed real wages," the Federation maintains.
What's next: signature collection and general strike
The union members warn that in the absence of real dialogue or exempting healthcare employees from the 10% reduction in payroll expenses, protests will continue in stages.
The first step will be initiating the signature collection for a strike in all public healthcare units nationwide, followed by declaring a general strike after the adoption of the regulatory act within the legal deadline.
"Given the impact of this form of protest on the entire healthcare system, we express hope that the Government will choose the path of real dialogue and understand that healthcare employees cannot be the variable for adjusting its economic policies," conclude the union representatives.
Health Minister: I oppose the 10% cut in medical staff income
Although healthcare unions speak of major salary losses and the initiation of a general strike, Health Minister Alexandru Rogobete states that he opposes the 10% cut in medical staff income and that dialogue with employee representatives continues.
The official specified that the dialogue with the unions is ongoing and that final decisions will be known in the immediate future.
"It is their right to gather signatures for a possible general strike, I cannot comment on that, but what I can tell you is that the dialogue with the unions is ongoing, especially for all the rearrangements and reforms we are implementing in the healthcare system during this period," Rogobete stated.
He added that some reforms "disturb" but are necessary for the system to remain sustainable. "I oppose the 10% cut in medical staff income in hospitals and ambulance services," the minister said.
What the Minister says about shifts and hiring
The Minister reiterated that Healthcare is the only field exempt from hiring freezes, with recruitment being allowed in 2026 through a memorandum approved by the Government. Additionally, Rogobete acknowledged the existence of long-standing tensions related to the organization of medical shifts.
"The tension has been ongoing for years because the shift system has not been rethought and operates on a mechanism that is completely outdated and no longer meets current needs," the Minister said.
According to him, the regulatory act on reorganizing shifts is in "almost final form," but cannot be approved before the budget adoption, with the estimated deadline being "March-April."