The leader of the SSSH trade union federation, Mladen Novosel, said on Thursday that union negotiators representing over 2,000 workers in the city-owned Zagreb Holding utility company abandoned negotiations over layoffs announced by city officials.

Union members who took part in the negotiations with the Zagreb Holding management demanded that the first order of business should involve plans to reorganize and revamp the company’s branches before any layoffs are discussed, Novosel told a news conference.

“We are walking out of the negotiations, we are leaving with this farce,” Novosel said, adding that the walkout is “an attempt to persuade the management of Zagreb Holding to start solving problems where the workers are employed.”

The unionists also accused the Zagreb Holding management of non-transparent negotiations on redundancies.

In late 2021, the holding’s management announced a plan to cut 544 jobs at the company, or about 10 percent of its work force of nearly 5,200 people. In a new plan unveiled in early February, this was increased to 760 jobs. In January, Novosel said that the unions would not accept the plan.

The 45-page plan released by Zagreb Holding’s management projected increase in revenues by 260 million kuna (€34.6 million) and cutting costs by 54 million kuna (€7.2 million) in 2022, which should help the company turn from a 315 million kuna (€42 million) loss in 2021  to a 18.6 million kuna (€2.5 million) profit in 2022.