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Zagreb, Croatia:Thousands of Croatians protested Saturday, April 18, 2026, in the capital Zagreb to demand higher salaries and pensions amid rising inflation in the EU nation in recent months.
The protest dubbed "Croatia Together for Higher Wages and Pensions" was held as the country in March registered inflation of 4.89 percent, the highest in the euro-zone.
Carrying banners saying "Stop the tax of poverty" and "If everything got more expensive, why didn't our salaries?", protesters marched through downtown Zagreb before gathering at the main Jelacic square.
"I have a pension of 620 euros. We came to protest in order to improve the situation of pensioners and workers," Slobodanka Andric, a 69-year-old pensioner from Vukovar, told AFP.
"The government need to see more clearly that our pensioners and workers on a minimum wage are barely surviving," Ivan Vecerin, 40, a technician in Dubrovnik hospital, told AFP.
The rally was organised by three main unions' and one pensioners' associations with many participants coming from other Croatian cities.
The president of Croatia's SSSH union federation Mladen Novosel said the demands were "not unreasonable" and offered the government a two-part settlement. "At the end of the year, when the minimum wage increases, raise it by 250 euros gross and do the same next year. That way we will reach the salary we are asking for," said Novosel.
Unions want the net minimum and average wage to be raised to 1,100 and 2,200 euros respectively (currently around 800 and 1,500 euros). They also want average pensions to be raised to 1,100 from the current 700 euros.
The main goal of the protest, according to organisers, is to "wake up Croatian workers, people, pensioners, and students" and restore their belief that they should stay and fight for better conditions in Croatia, rather than moving abroad.
Croatia, an EU member since 2013, had the bloc's sixth-highest food prices, but ranks 19th in terms of average monthly wages.
Food takes a 26.7 percent share of living costs, compared to 16.5 percent in neighbouring Slovenia and 12.5 percent in Germany.
