June 7 (BTA) - The Confederation of Independent Trade
Unions in Bulgaria  (CITUB) proposes that the 60/40 job
retention scheme (where the government pays 60 per cent of the
wage bill and the employer, 40 per cent) become 75/100, CITUB
Executive Secretary Asya Goneva commented for BTA on Monday
ahead of this week's meeting of the National Council for
Tripartite Cooperation that will focus on this measure. The idea
 is to apply the 75/100 measure in cases where enterprises
affected by the COVID-19 situation have introduced part-time
work, which has led to a drop in sales revenues by at least 20
per cent in the corresponding month compared to the like month
of 2019.
    
Goneva said that the job retention measure, which last week the
caretaker Labour and Social Policy Minister said would be
extended to June and July, needs to remain in effect because the
 introduction of new support measures requires months of waiting
 for a notification from the European Commission. Given that the
 60/40 measure has already obtained such a notification and that
 all businesses are now open, it can and should continue to be
used but with small technical corrections, the CITUB believes.

According to the CITUB, the 60/40 measure is very effective.
Enterprises show strong interest in it and take advantage of the
 support offered. Since the start of 2021, over 13,000
employers/enterprises and 296,000 employees have been supported.
 Contrary to some's claims, the majority of the businesses who
have used the measure (52 per cent) are small and medium-sized
enterprises, Goneva told BTA, adding that the CITUB's assesment
of this measure was and continues to be positive.

The trade unions sent as early as last week their proposals for
measures until the year's end to Labour Minister Galab Donev.
Among these are an extention of the 80/20 measure applied to
hotel and restaurant businesses and to passenger land transport,
 as well as its application in the air transport sector. The
Employment for You measure under Operational Programme Human
Resources Development and other programmes should also be
extended, the CITUB proposes.

NV/DS



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