District executive committees brace for job cuts

December 12, BPN. One way to increase local officials’ salaries is staff reduction, Alaksandr Łukašenka has told a meeting in Minsk.

He said that the district head will remain in charge of the payroll fund after executive committee officials have been sacked.

“And in the current situation, by increasing executive and technological discipline, we can halve the district executive committee,” Łukašenka’s press office quoted him as saying. “I could cope with 45. And distribute the remaining funds as you see fit among the rest. We will later add something from the budget as the economy grows.”

He called for an analysis of how many people are actually needed at district and city executive committees.

“Don’t keep excess numbers. The payroll will remain the same as at the time I made my decision, and no one will take away or steal this money. Dismiss two people, and keep the payroll to yourselves,” Łukašenka said.

He suggested that laid-off civil servants should be sent to “other responsible areas of work,” for example, farms. “In my time, it was an incredible honor to leave a district party committee or a district executive committee to lead a state farm or a collective farm. They were standing in line,” he said.