The average salary in Hidroelectrica, the state-owned power producer which went insolvent earlier this year in Romania, was of EUR 1,643, and employees get 70 types of awards and fees, according to the company's judiciary administrator.

The collective contract, which was signed in 2005, will expire in 2013 and puts pressure on the company's financial indicators, while encouraging laziness, according to Remus Borza, head of Euro Insol, the judiciary administrator.

The basis salary for the time worked by employees if 41 percent of the total revenues per employee and the 59 percent difference is covered by various financial rewards. For example, a drivers has a gross salary of RON 9,900 (some EUR 2,200). Some of the financial rewards include holiday bonus of RON 3,000, RON 2,100 for traveling expenses, including for family reasons, RON 3,100 bonus for long time service with the company.

“This is very atypical, more than half of the pay is for something else than actual work,” said Borza.

Personnel expenses in Hidroelectrica for this year are at some RON 461 million – the equivalent of some EUR 102 million, more than in 2011, according to the Euro Insol report.

According to the report, the company became insolvent because of contracts with the so called 'smart boys' and contracts at lower prices, as well as non-performing investments and the prolonged drought, the collective work contract and the energy purchase from third parties.

editor@romania-insider.com