On Friday, paramedics in Tbilisi, the Georgian capital, staged a protest outside the Center for Emergency Coordination and Urgent Assistance and demanded doubling of their salary and “decent” working conditions, it was reported. the Georgian public broadcaster.

Ambulance teams, including doctors, nurses and drivers, said they held meetings with the country’s deputy health ministers who promised to meet their demands, but added that “nothing has happened”. changed financially” for them since.

They also called the government’s decision to cut state supplements issued during the pandemic “unfair”, noting that the number of emergency calls had not decreased since then.

Paramedics said they would hold “permanent rallies” if their demands were not met, giving authorities time to respond until Tuesday.

Irakli Amiranashvili, the head of the medical workers’ union, told Interpressnews ambulance services had decided to switch their employees to 12-hour shifts, a change rejected by workers due to “over workload and the absence of a change in salary”.

During the rally, protesters signed a statement drafted to be sent to Health Minister Zurab Azarashvili and Aleksandre Kutibashvili, the head of the Center for Emergency Coordination and Urgent Assistance.

Protesters said they would gather again outside the Health Ministry on Tuesday.