Financial Services, Latvia, Legislation, Markets and Companies, Medicine, Strike

After nearly two hour long pre-strike talks, Valdis Keris, the leader of the Trade Union of Health and Social Care Employees (LVSADA), told journalists that although no extra funding for raising medics' wages was allocated in addition to the already approved EUR 10 million the union agreed to cancel the strike.

Health Minister Guntis Belevics (Greens/Farmers) said that the ministry and the trade union would set up a joint workgroup tasked with finding sources of funding for raising the medics' wages in 2016. The workgroup is expected to come up with a clear plan for the pay raise by mid-2016 when the government will be passing amendments to the national budget.

Keris told LETA that the union was not going to give up on its demand for a 10% wage increase, which would require EUR 22 million in Latvia's 2016 budget. The trade union is therefore determined to work with the Health Ministry to secure the necessary funding.

Kerlis also said that the trade union did not accept any of the ministry's plans for the distribution of the EUR 10 million.