BRATISLAVA, March 16, (WEBNOVINY) – The program of revitalization of railway companies, which the Cabinet approved with comments at a session on Wednesday, will let go around 5,000 employees of the companies. Under it, the company should achieve balanced results within three years. The recovery plan in the three state-run railway companies should also secure settlement of receivables between the railway firms and the state and optimize the setup of the railway transport sector. The Transport Ministry wants to select a strategic partner for the freight company ZS Cargo Slovakia, a.s. in an international tender by June of next year and offer it a 66-percent stake in the company. The Finance Ministry had proposed to sell the whole stake in Cargo at once.
In three phases, Cargo is to lay off 1,800 people, which is one-fifth of the total staff. The railway infrastructure operator Zeleznice Slovenskej Republiky (ZSR) should make 2,700 people redundant by the end of 2012 in two phases, which is 16 percent of the current staff. The passenger railway company ZSSK should let go 621 people by 2014 in five stages, which will be 12 percent of its total employees. The actual number of laid off people might be lower, as the company announced a lower reduction of train connections than it is set in the revitalization program.
Among other measures, Cargo wants to save EUR 25 million by the end of this year by slimming down management and staff reductions and additional EUR 13 million next year. Wages in the company will not rise at all, based on the plan. Cargo’s indebtedness reaches 75 percent, as its liabilities amount to EUR 518 million on assets worth EUR 685 million.
ZSSK will reduce costs by EUR 880,000 this year thanks to reduction of managerial staff, and EUR 1.3 million in the next years. Its transportation output will decrease by 1.14 million train kilometers from the current 32.4 million train kilometers.
ZSR should reduce spending by EUR 10.7 million by rationalizing organizational structures of the general directorate and optimizing transport management. New system of administration and maintenance of infrastructure should save EUR 8.6 million. Electronic auctions of goods and services, for instance, should bring cost cuts worth EUR 3 million.
SITA
