Association of Managers: SMEs Most Vulnerable During State of Emergency

SAM

Because of a shortage of money, small and medium-sized businesses in vulnerable sectors are the most affected by the current state of emergency in Serbia, after the declaration of a pandemic, Serbian Association of Managers president Dragoljub Damjanovic said during an online conference.

During the conference called, "Business in Challenging Times" he explained that urgent efforts were required to encourage big businesses to boost the turnover of smaller businesses as much as possible, and that the government should bring a special set of measure for those in the hardest-hit sectors. "It is vital for the first level of aid to be directed at these businesses, to defer their payments to the state, so that they don't need to lay off workers, and are enabled to quickly restart their business with the help of favorable loans without large guarantees," Damjanovic said.

Slovenian Chamber of Commerce GM Sonja Smuc said that Slovenian parliament had brought several laws that facilitated businesses that are struggling in the current situation.

"If a company sends an employee home due to a lack of work, the law says that the employee is entitled to 80 percent of their regular salary, while the state will provide 40 percent of this amount through subsidies. Two-thirds of our members have seen a decline in income of over 30 percent, while one-third experienced a 70 percent drop," Smuc said.