Czech Labor Unions Protest Government's Austerity Measures

Nationwide strikes and protests staged in response to spending cuts and tax hikes aimed at halving the budget deficit in two years.

Labor unions in the Czech Republic staged a day of protests and strikes across the country, opposing the government's austerity measures and spending cuts aimed at controlling the deficit.
The protests are in response to a package of $6.7 billion of spending cuts and tax hikes pushed through by Prime Minister Petr Fiala's government, which aims to halve the budget deficit in two years.
The unions are demanding more funding for the education and healthcare sectors and protesting proposed changes to the pension system that would link the age of retirement to life expectancy.
Over 7,200 nursery, elementary and high schools across the country were either fully or partially closed in the biggest such protest since the establishment of the Czech Republic in 1993.
Despite the protests, the government maintains that the measures are necessary to stop state indebtedness and reduce the budget deficit by 97 billion Czech crowns ($4.3 billion) next year and by 150 billion ($6.7 billion) in 2025.