Imagine this: healthcare workers with secondary education in Montenegro, quietly and diligently working for years, have now raised their voices demanding a 15 to 20 percent pay raise. Yes, you read that right! While doctors with higher education have enjoyed significant salary adjustments, the middle medical and non-medical staff remain on the sidelines of reforms. A nurse with 20 years of experience earns a salary barely covering basic living costs, with a coefficient of 6.58. Starting September 1st, the lowest coefficient for employees with secondary education will be raised to 7.50, but that’s nowhere near a fair wage. Unions have made it clear: this is not a fight for privileges, but for respect and justice. “When the middle medical and non-medical staff stop, healthcare stops!” they warn. And while the authorities stay silent, healthcare workers are ready to no longer be silent. Will the state finally hear the cry of those who save lives every day? Or will we watch healthcare bleed while those closest to patients barely survive? If you’ve got something to say, maybe it’s time to say it — because this isn’t just their fight, it’s our future.
