Interior Minister Lubomír Metnar (ANO) announced on 29 September 2026, after talks with trade unionists in Prague, that the salaries of police officers, firefighters, customs officers and prison service members are to rise by 2,600 to 2,900 crowns a month every year over the next three years.[1][2][3]
Shape of the plan
According to the minister, the tariff component of pay is to rise by 1,300 crowns a year. The stabilisation allowance is to add the same amount each year, and the remaining 300 crowns, according to the Ministry of the Interior, are to go to above-tariff components, such as standby duty or overtime. By 2029 salaries are to rise by up to 8,700 crowns, according to Metnar. The ministry wants the starting salary of police officers and firefighters after completing professional training to be 50 thousand crowns at the beginning of 2029, and is aiming for an average salary exceeding 65 thousand crowns a month.[1][3][4]
Metnar said that the talks with the trade unions were long but constructive. He considers the split of money between the tariff and the stabilisation allowance fairer than the across-the-board tariff increase that the unions are demanding. He told journalists that the situation will very probably no longer change.[1][3]
Other parts of the 2027 budget
According to the minister, the number of police officers is to rise by 1,500 to 43,000 and the number of firefighters by roughly one hundred, which, according to the director general of the Fire Rescue Service, Petr Ošlejšek, is the first such rise in the last three years. Cybersecurity is to receive 240 million crowns more and volunteer firefighters 50 million crowns more. The firefighters plan to build three new stations, for example in Přerov, Jablonné or Šluknov.[3][4]
Reactions
The Unie bezpečnostních složek does not agree with the model. According to its statement, the fixed amount of 1,300 crowns does not even represent a five percent increase in the tariff for most members, and for more experienced ones it is often two to three percent. The union says that the trade union organisations are demanding an increase in basic tariffs of ten percent. Its chairman Aleš Lehký said that the unions want to request a meeting with Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and Finance Minister Alena Schillerová (both ANO).[3][4]
Former Interior Minister Vít Rakušan (STAN) said on Czech Television that the previous government had already announced the same salary growth and that the medium-term outlook had assumed a five percent annual growth in tariffs, that is, roughly 2,900 crowns.[1]
Related articles: Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic, Ministry of the Interior
Chronology
- — Interior Minister Lubomír Metnar announced that the salaries of police officers, firefighters, customs officers and prison service staff will increase annually by 2,600 to 2,900 crowns per month between 2027 and 2029. ČTK / České noviny ČTK / České noviny