After several long and difficult meetings with the concessionaire SOF Connect AD and after the presentation of proposals that provide for a serious limitation of existing social benefits and workers' rights, the trade unions officially submitted a counter-proposal to the draft of the new Collective Labour Agreement.

The employer's proposals include a minimum salary increase threshold of just 4.5%, a reduction in the additional days of paid annual leave for length of service by one day in each category, a reduction of 4 days in the additional leave for work under specific conditions and risks to life and health, as well as a reduction of one day in the additional leave for employees who perform their duties after the end of regular working hours.

In response, FTTU insisted on fair and economically justified parameters that reflect the good financial results of the company and the increasing workload of the staff.

Main demands:

1. Remuneration increase

A minimum threshold of 9% for the increase of basic monthly salaries.

2. Preservation of additional paid annual leave for length of service

It is proposed to maintain the following amounts of paid annual leave:

• 20 working days for length of service up to 5 years inclusive;

• 22 working days for length of service from 5 to 10 years inclusive;

• 23 working days for length of service from 10 to 15 years inclusive;

• 24 working days for length of service over 15 years.

3. Additional leave/time off for specific working conditions

FTTU insists on preserving the additional leave for employees working under specific conditions and risks to life and health. During the negotiations, a compromise was reached, proposing 8 working days instead of the previous 9 working days.

4. Additional leave for work after regular working hours

The demand remains that employees who, due to the special nature of the work, perform their official duties after the end of regular working hours, are entitled to additional paid annual leave of 6 working days.

5. Minimum salaries under the Collective Labour Agreement

The minimum salary in the company for the period 2026 – 2028 should be determined as the minimum monthly wage for the country, increased by a coefficient of 1.3 and rounded up to the nearest whole euro.

Regarding the minimum wages in the company, the employer proposes that the clause remains effective up to EUR 620.20 for 2026, EUR 660 for 2027, and EUR 700 for 2028, while we from FTTU insist on higher thresholds – EUR 620.20 for 2026, EUR 710 for 2027, and EUR 750 for 2028.

6. Payment for night work

Additional remuneration for each hour of night work or part thereof in the amount of EUR 1.00, or a higher amount if such arises from the regulatory framework.

The employer's proposal is that the amount should be EUR 0.93 per hour.

7. Retirement benefits

FTTU insists on preserving maximum terms of current conditions upon termination of the employment relationship due to reaching retirement age.

It is proposed:

• For employees with 10 to 20 years of service – keeping the benefit in the amount of gross salary for 9 months, including the compensation under Art. 222, para. 3 of the Labor Code;

• For employees with 20 or more years of service – compensation in the amount of the gross salary of 12 months in 2026 and 11 months in 2027, including the compensation under Art. 222, para. 3 of the Labor Code.

The position of FTTU remains firm:

Federation of Transport Trade Unions and the trade union organization within the company consider the proposals made completely realistic and aligned both with the financial state of the company and with the contribution of the employees to the results achieved.

Despite differences on a number of issues, negotiations continue in a spirit of constructive social dialogue. During the talks, FTTU demonstrated readiness for reasonable compromises on individual texts and made a number of concessions in its effort to reach a balanced agreement. The Federation expects this constructiveness to be taken into account by the employer as well, so that the good economic and financial results of "SOF Connect" find a fair reflection in the new Collective Labour Agreement.

Negotiations continue, and FTTU will stand ground for the preservation of existing rights and benefits and will insist on a decent income increase for employees of "SOF Connect" AD.