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Judiciary sector employees are on a three day strike from October 7th to the 9th in protest against low wages. Trade Union representatives said the planned salary hikes for next year are insufficient and many employees in the judiciary will remain CZK 5,000 to 6,000 below the average wage in public administration. They argue that fundamental underfunding, inadequate staff capacity and work overload are leading to a loss of ability to ensure timely and high-quality performance. The unions are moreover insisting on a change in financing so that employees in the judiciary would be set apart from the rest of the civil service. Last-minute attempts by the justice minister to avert the strike action failed.

Coco Gauff dashed Karolina Muchova’s hopes of winning the title at the China Open on Sunday beating the Czech in straight sets 1:6, 3:6 in one hour and 16 minutes in Beijing. A semifinalist in the last two editions of the US Open, Muchova had hoped to win her second career WTA title this year after her first and only victory five years ago in South Korea. She lost both final matches this season. In July, was beaten by China's Zheng Qinwen in a decider in Palermo.

Nine Czechs and three of their Lebanese family members were evacuated from Lebanon late on Saturday on a Slovak repatriation flight to Bratislava. Their safe return was confirmed by Czech Foreign Ministry spokesman Daniel Drake, who said the ministry is not aware of any other Czechs interested in repatriation from Lebanon at the moment. The authorities remain in contact with all Czechs registered in Lebanon through the Drozd travel data base, as well as long-term Czech residents in the country. There are currently under 200 Czechs in Lebanon.

The cost of housing in Czechia continues to rise and high demand for apartments drove their prices to new highs in the second quarter of this year, real estate agencies reported. In the largest cities across the Czech Republic, the average purchase price surpassed CZK 100,000 per square metre for the first time in history, according to the latest Real Index survey conducted by the consulting company Deloitte. Across the country, people bought flats for an average of CZK 101,700 per square metre. An average 70-metre flat cost CZK 7.1 million, which is almost 12 percent more than a year ago. The most expensive housing is traditionally in Prague, where between April and June an average apartment cost CZK 132,000 per square meter, up 15 percent year-on-year. The cheapest apartments are available in the Ústí nad Labem region where they sell for CZK 34,900 per square metre on average.