Education: Teachers' Salaries May Increase, Finance Ministry's Approval Needed

Bratislava, January 23 (TASR) - Salaries for both teaching and non-teaching staff in education could increase by 7 percent starting in September this year, although the final salary increase must be confirmed by the Finance Ministry and agreed upon within the ruling coalition, TASR has learnt from the Education Ministry's following a meeting between the ministry and the representatives of the Education Trade Union. However, according to the education ministry, such a salary increase will lead to higher state expenditure in the following years, which the ministry doesn't currently have and will require additional consolidation. As the ministry added, negotiations with the unions are also ongoing regarding the exact details of the salary increase for 2026. "The discussion focuses on a 7 percent increase, with 5 percent allocated for the adjustment of base salaries (tariffs) and 2 percent potentially set aside for a flexible, motivational component," the ministry added. However, education unionists haven't yet called off their strike alert. "It will be called off once it’s clear that we'll have an official government stance on this, in the form of a government decree confirming the decision," said Education Trade Union head Pavel Ondek. lin/mcs