“There has been a lot of talk over the past few days of decreasing the number of workers in Zagreb Holding (utility conglomerate), however, there has not been any mention that since stepping into office we have employed 440 people in kindergartens, at the moment we are in the process of employing 80 ZET (public transport) drivers and 40 firefighters, and we will employ 40 municipal services monitoring officer,” Tomašević said addressing the public at the celebration in Maksimir Park.
“It is essential that people are employed through real job advertisements after years of being employed due to party membership, but those times are over”, he added.
“On 1 May we remember all those who fought for workers’ rights which we take for granted today, he said and added that the “fight has to continue.” The Zagreb city authorities firmly believes in unionising and collective bargaining because that is the only way workers’ rights and better working conditions can be won, and that contributes to a better society and better quality of life for all”, he said.
Crowds of citizens attended the celebration in Maksimir Park where they were first greeted by Social Democratic Party (SDP) officials, including the head of the SDP Zagreb branch, Viktor Gotovac, and president of the City Assembly, Joško Klisović.
“Workers’ Day isn’t just a ceremony. It is a great day. We remember the fight for fundamental human rights and that fight hasn’t stopped, it is ongoing,” Gotovac told reporters.
He said they were fighting for workers stripped of their rights, who are not paid for overtime work and who cannot get an open-ended employment contract.
Bridge councillor Trpimir Goluža underscored that this is a time when workers’ rights are quite threatened, which is obvious in the situation in the Zagreb Holding.
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