13th MONTH SALARY: TRAIN OF SUITS AGAINST STATE

Several dozens of policemen, frontier guards, firemen, and civil guards sue the Ministry of the Interior because they have received only the twelfth part of their salary of the 13th month due last year.

Civil servants also consider suits and it is said several ministries will be sued by their employees on the same ground. The Independent Union of Policemen turns to the Constitutional Court in the issue. The problem is caused by a new law passed in February 2004 which modified the categories of the employees. The plaintiffs claim that the state simply swindled their 13th month pay renaming it ’0th month salary’. The labour courts so far have not dealt with the problem.

Translated by Péter Szentmihályi-Szabó