Ahead of International Workers' Day and in memory of the victims of the struggle for workers' rights and killed workers and Croatian war veterans, union leaders laid wreaths at Zagreb's central Mirogoj cemetery, noting that this year there would be no traditional march on 1 May.

SSSH trade union leader Mladen Novosel said that three representative union federations were paying tribute to workers killed at work, recalling that today was World Day for Safety and Health at Work and that in 2022, 66 workers were killed at work in Croatia, which, he added, must no longer be tolerated.

Asked about announcements of protests, Novosel said that it was ridiculous that nothing could be resolved or agreed on without the prime minister’s involvement, wondering if the competent ministers exercised their powers or not.

If they don’t, we will talk only with PM Andrej Plenkovic, Novosel said, adding that what makes the situation additionally absurd is that Plenkovic chooses who to receive for talks.

Doctors cannot be a class above all other workers and enjoy special rights, he said, adding that now nurses and judges were demanding their rights and that soon anarchy would break out in which collective bargaining would become meaningless.

Novosel also criticised the possibility of lowering the rate of contributions for employers while allowing them to retain profit to pay higher net wages, which, he said, would eventually be detrimental to workers and future pensioners.

He said that on 1 May a meeting would be held at which messages would be sent to the government and parliament but that there would be no 1 May parade.

NHS trade union leader Kresimir Sever said that regardless of the official statistics and the government’s efforts to prove that Croatians live well, workers are losing in the inflation battle, notably with regard to prices of food, which, he said, affects most families.

Croatian workers therefore have the right to demand higher wages and normal working conditions, he said.

Commenting on the finance minister’s announcement of changes to the income tax, Sever described as worrying plans to lower the rate of pension contributions to enable net wage growth, noting that without compensation, it could bring into question the already low pensions.