Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama took aim at the wage leak of hundreds of thousands of citizens in a post on his Facebook page.

He said that companies and businesses suspected of manipulating the real salaries of their employees have until January to come clean.

The head of the executive noted that fiscal authorities have already sent out a letter to all businesses suspected of fiscal evasion.

“Incorrect declaration is punishable by a fine, but evasion is a criminal offense,” said Rama. “Failure to declare the real salary has serious consequences for the pension scheme but also for job security”.

Rama underlined that this behavior from businesses is harmful, referring to it as a “pension grabbing scheme”, adding that it becomes a hurdle in raising the pensions of retirees.

“We will take seriously painful measures for those that won’t respond to our call”, said Rama.

The leftist government led by PM Edi Rama has tried several times to tackle the widespread phenomenon brought under the spotlight from the wage leak.

However, the leak also showed that government attempts so far have proven unsuccessful.

The last time Rama made a similar plea was earlier during the pandemic, even promising compensation to those who would report their employers.