Public Administration Minister Boris Koprivnikar said after the government session that the talks with the unions would start on Thursday, adding that nobody in the government was fully satisfied with the proposals as concessions had to be made.

While the minister was tight-lipped about the concrete measures, a press release from the government says that the current cost-cutting measures would be extended to next year and that additional measures would be taken.

These measures include no promotions and payment of regular performance bonuses, a reduced holiday allowance and lower premiums for supplementary pension insurance. Cuts in various other bonuses are also planned and are to be negotiated with the trade unions.

The starting points sent to trade unions show that the government wants to abolish bonuses for specialisation, master's and PhD degrees as well as lower bonuses for years of service and work on Sundays and holidays.

Public sector trade unions met the proposals with criticism, especially those related to cuts in various bonuses. They expected that the status of public sector employees will not worsen, while the government is planning the opposite, according to them.

"They obviously want to save on one group, in this case on public servants, in order to give to some other group. This is causing a potential conflict between the two groups," Branimir Štrukelj of the KSJS trade union told the STA in reference to holiday allowance for pensioners.

Štrukelj assessed that an agreement with the government was "possible, but not probable", while Janez Posedi of the Pergam trade union confederation believes that the government will not succeed as the proposed measures are going beyond the limits of the possible.

Koprivnikar said that the measures "put pressure on all sides", adding that it was clear that the government must save money to keep the budget development-oriented.

The government and the public sector need to reach an agreement until the end of the year, when the existing cost-cutting measures will expire.

No measures would mean the state paying an additional EUR 300m for the public sector wage bill next year, excluding a 3% reduction in public sector cost envisaged in the 2015 budget.

Trade unions have maintained that they will not agree to additional cuts and also want the freeze on promotion to be released.