Hungarian strike organizers admit defeat after single day
Some tens of thousands of people took part in a strike jointly organised by the Liga Unions and the Workers Councils to protest the introduction of the multi-player health insurance system, the planned closure of less-used railway lines and new pension-calculation methods. However, after Parliament passed the bill on transforming the health insurance system on Monday evening, the strike was called off just after one day.
The state railways MÁV and the Free Union of Railway Workers assessed the strike differently: MÁV said over 50% of the trains had been in service, while the union said rail traffic came to a standstill throughout the country. Rail passengers instead used Volán buses to reach their destination. The railway company appealed to a labour court, seeking it to establish the illegality of the strike, while the union appealed to the labour inspectorate to launch an investigation, as it said that MÁV had resorted to legally questionable methods.
Meanwhile over 10,000 health care workers and teachers went on strike for varying periods, while power plants, factories and the customer service section of Hódmezővásárhely local authority stopped work for various durations. Farmers and their supporters blocked single lanes of highways in numerous counties. Around two dozen workers went on strike at Ferihegy airport, but caused no delays in air traffic.
The Federation of Hungarian Physicians and the Democratic Union of Health Care Workers reported strikes in 21 health care institutions, which did not disrupt health care services, while 25% of the staff stopped work at the Veszprém county hospital, which is run by former health minister Jenő Rácz.
The above story is just one of more than two dozen published today by Hungary Around the Clock, the most comprehensive source of daily English-language news about Hungary. For a free trial of HATC, click here. Hungarian news sources include Népszabadság; Magyar Hírlap; Világgazdaság; Napi Gazdaság; Magyar Nemzet; Népszava; Kossuth Rádió news and Hungarian television's nightly news broadcast.
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