Romania : first collective agreement in the finance sector signed (in brief)

On 12 December, FinBan, the Romanian federation for financial services employers, and the FSAB, the federation of insurance and bank trade unions, signed the first collective agreement in the banking and finance sector. Under the agreement, which will be valid for two years, a minimum wage of 2,500 leu (around 537 euros) will be established at banks. It also establishes severance pay, which varies according to an employee’s length of service: one month of pay for between one and five years of service, two months for five to ten years of service, three for 10-15 years, and four months pay for 15 years of service and above. Meanwhile the time spent by employees to open and close a bank branch will be considered working time and must therefore be included in the eight-hour working day. To encourage training, if an employee identifies a training course that could bring added value to the company, the employer will cover half of the price of the course. The sector trade union views the deal as a first step. It will apply to 26,000 employees at member financial services firms, from the leasing to loan companies. Only 8,500 workers are understood to be members of a trade union.