The co-leader of opposition LMP called for wage increase in the public sector to match inflation on Wednesday. Máté Kanász-Nagy told a press conference that raising the salaries of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and other government members was not enough for guaranteeing the quality of public services.
The salaries of teachers, social workers, nurses and elderly care workers also need to be increased, he said. Parliament is scheduled to hold a debate later in the day on a proposal in line with which Orbán would “take care of” increasing the wages of the members of the government. Under the proposal, the rate of increase would also be decided by the prime minister, Kanász-Nagy said. He added that Orbán’s salary had increased by 233% in the past 12 years, while the salaries for state secretaries have gone up by 75.5%. The problem is not that leaders get more money but that public sector workers again get neglected, he said. Answering a question, he said that in addition to a one-time wage increase matching inflation, teachers’ wages should also be tied to the minimum wage. If Hungary wants to close the gap with Austria in terms of teachers’ wages by 2030, then they must increase by 100,000 forints (EUR 260) annually, he said.
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