Career diplomats to get much higher salaries in Armenia 

ArmInfo. In Armenia, the  rates of salary supplements for diplomats with a class qualification  will be significantly increased. At the plenary session on December  5, the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia approved in the  second and final reading the amendments to the law "On the  remuneration of persons holding state positions and civil servant  positions". 

Presenting the document, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Republic of  Armenia Mnatsakan Safaryan emphasized that in the context of the  constantly changing geopolitical and regional environment in the  world, the challenges facing Armenia in the face of external threats,  it is necessary to mobilize the efforts of the country's foreign  policy department both on bilateral and international platforms. In  these conditions, diplomats have found themselves at the forefront of  these challenges. To this end, as the Deputy Minister noted, it is  extremely important to prevent the outflow of highly qualified  specialists by ensuring motivation for good work and prospects for  career advancement and attracting new personnel to the field.

Safaryan noted that currently the amount of bonuses does not  correspond to the work that diplomats do. As a result, diplomats  usually prefer to work in various international organizations or in  the private sector.  According to the current legislation, bonuses to  the salaries of diplomats with an average rank are 3%, and for a  higher rank - 1%. Bonuses are calculated based on the results of the  certification conducted by the Certification Commission of the MFA of  the Republic of Armenia. At the same time, bonuses cannot exceed 30%  of the diplomats' salaries. 

At the same time, the law contains exceptions for a number of  diplomats who are not subject to the requirement of an amount not  exceeding 30%. With the amendments, the amount of bonuses will be  80%.  Until now, the issue was regulated by issuing bonuses, but, as  the Deputy Minister noted, the problem needed to be solved in the  long term.