The National Trade Union Bloc (BNS) expects Prime Minister Luca Niculescu to demonstrate, through deeds, that the new government understands the importance of social dialogue and that the representation of workers will not remain only a formal obligation, the unionists say in a press release on Monday.
It has happened after Niculescu met representatives of the business community but did not set up a similar meeting with representatives of the trade union organisations representing the interests of approximately 5 million workers in Romania.
"The National Trade Union Bloc has learned with disappointment that the new government seems to start with the same flaws as the previous governments: selective dialogue, priority concern for the business environment and ignorance of workers, those who, through their work, keep the economy running! Today, October 26, 2026, at 14:00hrs, Prime Minister Luca Niculescu met representatives of the business environment. We have no knowledge of a similar meeting with representatives of trade union organisations, which represent the interests of approximately 5 million workers in Romania."
BNS says that each time capital seems to have priority while the workforce is treated "as a secondary element of the economic equation."
"We are almost no longer surprised by such approaches. Each time, capital seems to have priority, while the workforce is treated as a secondary element of the economic equation. The prime minister of Romania must understand that the economy is not built exclusively by capital and that the business environment cannot be the only interlocutor of the government when discussing the future of Romania. It is difficult to talk about balanced reforms, competitiveness, productivity and economic development when dialogue begins with only one of the parties involved. Wages, working conditions, purchasing power, labour taxation and social protection are not marginal topics. They are problems that directly affect millions of people and that cannot be legitimately discussed in the absence of their representatives."
According to BNS, the meeting of the prime minister with the representatives of the workers in Romania is not a privilege granted to them, but the observance of an elementary principle: the social dialogue must be balanced, not organised with priority "for those who have capital and left in wait for those who work."
"We hope that Prime Minister Luca Niculescu will find the necessary time to meet the representatives of the 5 million workers in Romania. We are not asking for a privilege for trade unions, but for the observance of an elementary principle: social dialogue must be balanced, not organised with priority for those who have capital and left to wait for those who work. Our warning is as clear as possible: if the new government wants to build sustainable public policies, it must treat with equal seriousness both components of the economic equation - capital and labour. One without the other cannot work. Mr Prime Minister, the business community must be listened to! But the workers must also be listened to! A responsible government does not choose between capital and labour and does not turn social dialogue into a conversation with a single interlocutor. Governance entails balance, and balance begins with respect for all those who contribute to Romania's economy. The National Trade Union Bloc expects Prime Minister Luca Niculescu to demonstrate, through deeds, that the new government understands the importance of social dialogue and that workers' representation will not remain just a formal obligation," say the trade unionists. AGERPRES
