Two-thirds of officials do not want to be under the emerging central building authority

Prague - About two-thirds of employees at building offices do not want to transition to the planned Office for Spatial Development. This office is set to be established after the adoption of an amendment to the building law, the main goal of which is to introduce a centralized state construction administration. Only 33 percent of employees would be willing to transition to the new system. This is according to a survey conducted by the Trade Union of State Authorities and Organizations, which involved 1,100 employees of building offices. According to the unions, the results indicate significant uncertainty among employees regarding the planned changes and their unwillingness to join the new office.

In the survey, 27 percent of agency employees stated that they do not plan to transition to the new system and expect to continue working at existing municipal, city, or regional offices. Another 40 percent of respondents indicated that in the event of reorganization, they would completely leave the system and seek other employment or potentially retire.

"It is necessary to take these signals very seriously. If the state does not pay its employees well and does not offer them corresponding conditions, assurances, and benefits that will be competitive against the private sector and local governments, the entire system of construction proceedings could collapse like a house of cards. People simply will not be willing to transition to the new system,” said union leader Pavel Bednář.

According to Bednář, the main reason for employees' reluctance to transition to the new office is the unattractiveness of the state as an employer. Employees in cities, municipalities, and regions have significantly better salaries and benefits. Moreover, the attractiveness of the work would be diminished as current officials would not have, for example, protection from political will as state employees. "Thus, the state is effectively telling people who carry out the construction administration agenda at current self-government offices to do the same work under significantly worse conditions in a significantly less secure environment,” added Bednář.

Minister for Local Development Zuzana Mrázová (ANO) stated in an interview with ČTK that the state does not plan to lay off employees at building offices with the introduction of centralized construction administration. As part of the restructuring of the building administration, she expects that new officials will need to be hired. The minister did not disclose how much money the state would need to invest in amending the building code.

The unions consider it alarming that the government does not seem to have a sufficient overview of the situation among employees. According to the union representatives, the planned establishment of regional coordinators to assist offices and local governments in transitioning to the new system will not resolve the situation. They believe that it is necessary for the government to also address compensation and working conditions for employees who are already working in the offices while preparing the amendment to the law. At the same time, it is also essential to continue the salary increases in the state administration, they believe.