Klaipėda University Hospital seeks to freeze wages to address deficits

Klaipėda University Hospital (KUL) management has proposed a one-year freeze on salary increases to stabilize its financial situation. The hospital expects to end the year with losses between 6 and 8 million euros.

General Director Audrius Šimaitis attributed the financial difficulties to high salary coefficients established before his tenure and the costs associated with hospital merger reforms, which he estimates cost at least 40 million euros. He noted that the wage fund accounts for approximately 80 percent of the hospital's total expenses.

The proposal follows employee opposition to a new compensation model that would have split salaries into fixed and variable components, which staff argued would lead to pay cuts. Under the new temporary agreement, existing coefficients remain, but wages will not increase until a new collective agreement is reached for 2028. Health Minister Linas Kukuraitis acknowledged the institution's significant challenges in managing debts and labor relations.