Medical staff from hundreds of hospitals across Romania went on a warning strike on Monday, July 20, to protest against the new salary law, which they say perpetuates salary inequalities between different professional categories in the system, and the freezing of positions in the healthcare system. A general strike is also planned for July 28.
The protests began at 9 AM and lasted until 11 AM. At the Floreasca Emergency Clinical Hospital in Bucharest, dozens of doctors, nurses, nursing assistants, and stretcher bearers interrupted their activity, displaying banners with messages such as “Stop humiliating medical staff” and “Make healthcare a priority.”
During the protest, medical activity was ensured by approximately one-third of employees, and emergencies were treated normally.
In Timișoara as well, healthcare unions said they were dissatisfied with the discussions regarding the salary law. Medical staff interrupted their activity for two hours at the County Hospital, the largest in western Romania, in order to send a warning signal.
Roughly 250 medical workers at the largest hospital in Dobrogea, the Constanța County Emergency Hospital, protested as well. The grievances were related to staff shortages, the reduction of certain salary rights, and the decrease in real incomes.
In Prahova, around 600 trade union members from the public healthcare system protested.
Irrespective of city, most complaints centered on the new salary law. According to union representatives, the law stipulates that bonuses are no longer classified according to working conditions but are divided into three levels. Level 1 bonuses may be granted to no more than 10% of employees, while level 2 and 3 bonuses may be granted to a maximum of 20% of employees, provisions that unions contest.
The president of the Sanitas Federation, Iulian Pope, told Digi24 that the new law introduces provisions that further restrict the granting of salary rights in the healthcare system. The trade union confederations requested the mediation of the president of Romania as early as last week and are waiting for a response. He warned that there is still a possibility of avoiding the general strike scheduled for July 28 if negotiations are resumed this week.
At the same time, Pope warned that a general strike would have much broader consequences than the warning strike held on Monday, when only emergency services were provided. “Surgical procedures, scheduled consultations, all these things will be postponed, and they will affect patients. And we do not want this,” the Sanitas president declared. He likewise rejected claims that the protests were pushed by union leaders.
Strikers also requested the removal of certain provisions from the salary law draft, changes to salary coefficients, and the unblocking of positions in the system.
The Wage Law for the budgetary sector was published in May by the Romanian Labor Ministry and quickly sparked criticism from trade unions in various sectors. Nevertheless, the political parties in Parliament are reportedly close to adopting a final version of the law, which is a milestone under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) with a EUR 770 million grant attached.
Romania’s budgetary payroll-to-GDP ratio was 9.4% in 2024, 8.8% in 2025, and will decrease to 8.1% this year, based on the budget plan and the GDP projections. The ratio would remain unchanged at 8.1% in 2027. The reduction is meant to lower the country’s budget deficit, which ballooned under the Social Democratic (PSD) government to around 9%. The budget deficit has since dropped, along with the trade deficit, but so have Romanians’ real wages.
(Photo source: Inquam Photos|Tudor Pana)
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