The trade union organisations in the Bulgarian State Railways (BDZ), backed by the union confederations, have given the government one last chance to avoid a mass railway strike in October, which they announced two weeks earlier in September. The railway unions are set to meet with Prime Minister Boyko Borisov and Transport Minister Ivaylo Moskovski on Monday 3 October in order to find common ground to clarify the situation in the railway sector, announced Plamen Dimitrov, President of KNSB (Confederation of Independent Bulgarian Unions). The unions are firmly opposed to the government's intention, under opressure of a memorandum with the World Bank, to privatize BDZ Freight Services, the freight section of the state-owned operator, traditionally more profitable than the troubled passenger section. All unions involved have complained about the lack of contact with BDZ management and the Transport Ministry.
English: http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=132176
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This article was published in the Collective Bargaining Newsletter. It aims to facilitate information exchange between trade unions and to support the work of ETUC's collective bargaining committee. For more information, please contact the editor Maarten van Klaveren, Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Labour Studies (AIAS) M.vanKlaveren@uva.nl. You may find further information on the ETUI at www.etui.org, and on the AIAS at www.uva-aias.net. © ETUI aisbl, Brussels 2011.