Slovenian Employers Will Pay 80% of Wages of Workers on Hold

Ljubljana, Slovenia (Pixabay)

Slovenian employers whom the Coronavirus has forced to send workers home where they are “on hold” will have to pay these workers at least 80% of their regular wages over the past three months, while 40% of that amount will be provided by the state, the Slovenian Cabinet proposed on March18. 

The government intervention, proposed because of the damaging effects of the pandemic on the economy, was accepted on March 21 by the parliament’s committee on labor without a single vote against it, while MPs will ratify it at the end of the week as part of an economic aid package, the Croatian HINA news agency has reported. 

Workers will be on forced leave for a maximum of three months, while employers will have the right to receive state subsidies once in three consecutive months. Employers who owe taxes or are undergoing insolvency procedures will not be eligible for the aid. 

Quarantined workers are also entitled to 80 percent of their wages while at home although in these cases the state will completely cover their wages. 

Employers forced to place a third or more employees on hold because of a drop in orders or production will also receive benefits, and this also applies to micro businesses with one or several employees. This applies to nearly 110,000 businesses which operate on the principle of “self-employment” many of which are in the sectors of culture, journalism, services, etc.