The Daily Dozen: 12 things to know about Czechia today

Minimum wage|Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Marian Jurečka's proposal to increase the minimum wage by CZK 1,100 crowns received criticism from other politicians, and from trade unions, ČT24 reports. The suggested increase, which Jurečka will submit to the government next week, would bring the minimum wage to CZK 17,300 gross.

Dwindling savings|With inflation this year in the Czech Republic the highest in 29 years, savings are also losing their value. A calculator from Seznam Zprávy allows users to calculate the total loss of value of CZK 10,000 in a savings account, depending on the month and year of depositing the amount as well as the time of withdrawal.

New connections|The state’s national rail operator, České dráhy (ČD), has new prices and timetables as of last Sunday. Despite prices increasing an average of 15 percent, some connections between Czechia’s cities will be made faster as the state carrier continues its modernization aims. Read more in our story.

Gender pay gap|Women in the Czech Republic get paid less than men on average for the same roles and type of work, due to motherhood and career breaks. The findings come from a study that assessed men and women aged between 30 to 55 years in 15 different countries in order to study the effects of motherhood on professional development. Read more in our story.

Václav Havel AI|A digital version of the former Czech president and playwright will be part of the Czech school curricula starting next year, Czech Radio reports. A "modern deductive tool for civic education teachers," according to Alena Resl from the Czech office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, one of the organizations behind the project. DigiHavel is the first technology based around a digital human to be used in Czech schools.

Poisoned river|The first hearing in a court case for the poisoning of the Bečva River has been set for Jan. 30, 2023, ČTK reports. The company Energoaqua from Rožnov pod Radhoštěm in the Vsetín region and its director Oldřich Havelka are facing charges for an ecological accident that happened in September 2020, when a cyanide spill affected the habitat of about 40 kilometers of the stream.

Holiday bookings|Only a third of Prague hotels will be fully occupied for the Christmas and New Year celebrations, according to a press release of the Association of Hotels and Restaurants of the Czech Republic. The greatest interest is for New Year's Eve stays, when about half of Prague's hotels are 50 to 80 percent full, according to the same source.

Under the mistletoe|A mainstay of Czech Christmas markets, mistletoe — either plain or dyed a festive silver or gold — will cost more this year, Denik reports. The collection of the plant is subjected to a number of restrictions and is banned in protected areas such as national parks. Its association with the Christmas holiday is likely tied to the Celts, who believed that mistletoe had magical properties and protected their houses and stables.

Czech movie archive|A new streaming platform aims to offer as complete an overview of Czech films as possible, iDnes reports. České kino, co-founded by Miloslav Šmídmajer, wants to offer up to 2,500 Czech or Slovak films that aren't available on other streaming platforms, such as Netflix or HBO Max, due to their niche appeal. It also wants to invest money on quality digitalization required for today's large TV screens.