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Czech trade unions have slammed changes to the labour code proposed by the government which would extend the length of short-term contracts, slash severance pay, and cut unemployment benefits for people who quit their jobs. The country’s main group of trade unions said Tuesday that if the changes went through, Czech employees would have the worst working conditions in Europe. Not all, however, are certain the government will push through all the tough changes it is promising – not without fully negotiating with the unions first.

As government ministries prepare for a year of austerity, the Interior Ministry has announced its plans for cutting its budget by 8.3 billion crowns. The result is what Minister Radek John warned would be a painful year for police and fire departments, which - in addition to facing pay cuts from the Labour Ministry - will also be stripped down to the bone financially. Many are concerned what the cuts will mean for safety and security.

The idea of panning for gold and finding that life changing nugget has surely appealed to everyone at one time or another. But the people with probably the biggest chance of achieving that dream have just got together in the Czech Republic for the World Gold Panning Championships near the town of Zlaté Hory on the Polish border.

Garnets, one of the world’s most ancient gems, come in a dozen varieties - but none is more precious than the fiery-red Pyrope variety which has been mined in the mountains of Bohemia for over 600 years. The Bohemian garnet, found in royal jewelry collections around the world, is given to visiting statesmen and every year thousands of tourists buy Bohemian garnet jewelry for someone special. Now Czech trading standards inspectors have issued a warning that they may not be getting the real thing.

On Thursday evening the Czech Republic’s main awards for wine producers were presented at a ceremony in Prague, with the main prize going to Josef Valihrach, whose winery is located in a small town in south Moravia. The head of the jury was Ivo Dvořák, a founding member of the association of Czech sommeliers. We caught up with him the morning after to find out about the winner, what challenges wine production in the country is facing, and if the quality of Czech wine has improved in recent years.

A monument was unveiled in Prague on Friday morning to Ryszard Siwiec, the Polish man who set himself alight in September 1968 in protest at his country’s participation in the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia. Siwiec committed suicide in Warsaw just weeks after the invasion and six months before the Czech student Jan Palach made his own terrible sacrifice in Prague. The monument was unveiled on the eve of the 42nd anniversary of the invasion.

Come 2011, the Ministry of Labour wants to see state employees’ salaries cut by 10%. That was the main point of a proposal put forward on Thursday as part of the coalition’s pledge to reform the public sector. The relevant unions wasted no time in voicing their absolute opposition to a plan that will likely be a matter of heated debate for months to come.

The Czech government has moved to crack down on foreign workers who overstay their welcome in the country. At the same time it has set up a new system for attracting qualified foreign workers.

What is being called the first classic barber’s shop in Prague has just opened its doors around five minutes’ walk from Wenceslas Square. Its owner says the aim is to recreate the atmosphere of a barbershop from Czechoslovakia’s inter-war First Republic, and provide the modern gentleman with a luxurious experience in a masculine environment.

The former director of the country’s biggest nuclear plant Temelín, František Hezoučký, is in hot water after it emerged that he attempted to leave the plant carrying nuclear material in his briefcase a few weeks ago. Both the police and the State Office for Nuclear Safety are now looking into the incident.