Interior Ministry denies plan to let go primarily rank-and-file officers

The Interior Ministry has denied reports it will focus primarily on rank-and-file police officers in a wave of layoffs next year that could prove essential to meeting austerity measures agreed by the government. Under the government’s plan, all 14 ministries will be required to save 10 percent from their budget, meaning likely job cuts. In an interview for the newspaper Právo, the Interior Minister Radek John suggested that layoffs would be necessary to avoid blanket wage cuts for all police officers and fire fighters. Právo writes that the layoffs would begin in next year’s 2Q. By contrast, Interior Ministry spokesman Jiří Reichl told the ČTK news agency on Thursday that if layoffs proved essential, the ministry would first look to save among officers not serving on regular duty.

Author: Jan Velinger