The union of public service workers (MKKSZ) and the union of social sector workers (SZAD) have called a nationwide strike for October 10, saying that the government had “failed to deliver on its promises and has deceived social sector workers”. In a statement, the unions noted that last March the government had vowed to devise a wage convergence plan and create the legal conditions for the implementation of a collective bargaining agreement for social sector workers. Government representatives present at the spring strike talks had pledged to deliver on their promises by April 30 and June 30, they added. The unions said that because the government had “failed to meet either deadline or live up to any of its promises”, they will now continue the strike they suspended back in March.

MKKSZ head Erzsébet Boros said after the March 14 strike that some 7,500 public employees had joined the work stoppage, with the majority being local council workers. Announcing that strike in January, she said the main reasons behind the problems facing public service workers were the sector’s “unsustainable, disorganised and professionally unintelligible wage policy” and the “completely chaotic wage system”. Government spokesman István Hollik declared that strike a “complete failure”, calling it a “political move by the opposition”.