Money has been allotted to increasing wages for policemen, firemen and border guards. According to the Interior Ministry, the average wage will grow by about €100 for them, while MPs, ministers and other officials will see their monthly wage grow by up to €200.
Jeļena Ržiščeva, a nurse at the Rīga Austrumu hospital has worked in the healthcare industry for 20 years, with little breaks for growing children. A full-time work, shifts of up to 12 hours, hard work without much to show for it.
"I looked into the totals for last month. I have received €383 for doing this job [...]," said Ržiščeva.
In the last five years, the only addition to the nurses' wages at Austrumu hospital was €8 if they received extra qualification.
"In the days of old, nurses were working as charity nurses, as nuns. I think we're slowly returning to that. Because in our country medicine is turning into ... well, it's a tricky moment.
All of these people who are going away... We are also thinking about that - the colleagues have gone, and it's very tempting for us too, as concerns money," said Ržiščeva, referring to healthcare specialists moving to work abroad for better wages.
This year the wages for many nurses will come very close to their aid-men and stretcher-bearers, because the minimum monthly wage will increase to €370, while many nurses will have their wage stay at the same level as before - at €374 a month.
"We asked the government to hand us €9.8m. Then we'd be able to add €10 to every category of medics. We were given €1.3, and we need €8.5 more. We can only hope on the parliament," said the Minister of Health Guntis Belēvičs (Greens and Farmers Union).
The wages for MPs and other government officials were increased as they're tied to the average wage in the country, which has grown to €765 this year. Such coefficients were proposed for medical personnel too, but politicians decided against it.
If that weren't the case, the wages for nurses would have been tied to 1.2 of the average wage, which would mean that nurses would earn €918 before taxes next year.
