Romanian Railway Co CFR Infrastructura Management, Workers Sign 2011 Collective Work Contract

The company’s employees will renounce their holiday bonuses, to create a pool from which severance pay will be provided to fired workers, as per the contract.

A company press release said the new contract respects the Romanian Government’s commitments regarding the railway system, outlined in the letter of intent signed with the International Monetary Fund and in the memorandum of understanding signed with the European Union.

The contract says railway employees will not receive food vouchers, salary bonuses, or benefits provided on holidays. It also stipulates that union leaders are not and will not be involved in commercial relations with transport branches.

The unions and management of rail freight company CFR Marfa signed the collective work contract for 2011 on February 16, while the two parties at passenger carrier CFR Calatori signed it on March 23.

The previous contracts expired on January 31.

On March 16, railway unionists went on strike for two hours, after negotiations with management on the new contracts failed, and threatened to launch a general strike. They called the strike off after the Government approved the budgets of the three railway companies – CFR Calatori, CFR Marfa and CFR SA.