The fourth day of the strike by some health workers continues with the same intensity, the Zajedno (Together) trade union said on Thursday morning.

They added that they demand concrete steps and deadlines for the fulfilment of their demands and expect Health Minister Vili Beros to meet with them and not with state secretaries. “Only then will we end the strike,” Krunoslav Kusec, president of the union organising the strike, told Croatian news agency Hina.

On Wednesday, Beros announced a meeting with the strike organisers at the ministry on Thursday, but said he did not have a mandate to meet their demands and would not be blackmailed.

Kusec: We will demand a written guarantee

Laboratory technicians, radiology technicians, pharmaceutical technicians and some nurses are taking part in the strike. The meeting is scheduled for 16:00.

Kusec confirmed that they will attend the meeting and demand a written guarantee as to when their demands regarding the adjustment of the coefficient and the basic salary will be met.

The ambulance drivers ended their strike on Wednesday, but Kusec claims that the strike continues with the same intensity, as new employees, especially nurses, are joining the strike every day.

A meeting with the government has also been demanded

A significant number of medical tests have not been carried out because of the strike, and the ministry is manipulating the data in this regard, Kusec claims. He said that in a single day, 1,000 tests were not performed at the Split University Hospital laboratory.

In response to Beros’ statement that he lacked the mandate to respond to the union’s demands, Kusec said that the Ministry of Health was involved in the creation of the coefficients.

The union has also asked for a meeting with the government, which is responsible for the entire state apparatus.