Croatia job keeping: Minister says redesigned measures to go into force soon

ZAGREB, Oct 14 (Hina) – Labour and Pension System Minister Josip Aladrovic said on Wednesday that the government, together with restaurant and bar owners, employers and trade unions, was expected to redesign job-keeping measures by Friday, after which they would be activated next week.

Speaking to reporters ahead of a government session, Aladrovic said that the government would do what was necessary to help retain jobs.

He said that there were currently no mass-scale layoffs due to the coronavirus crisis in relation to the most critical months of the pandemic, which he said was a good indicator.

However, the government must act considering the epidemiological and economic situation that changes quickly, he noted.

The reason for redefining government measures is that in past months, the revenue of restaurant and bar owners had improved and some of them did not have to use government aid, said Aladrovic.

“We have been in touch with employers and trade unions on a daily basis. If different measures prove possible, to enhance the possibility to prevent layoffs, we will adopt them,” he said.

Asked whether he believed, in the context of Monday’s shooting in St. Mark’s Square, that young people in Croatia were neglected, Aladrovic said he could not agree with that impression.

“… as regards youth employment policies, in the last term we reduced the youth unemployment rate from 50 to 18%,” he said, adding, in response to a reporter’s question, that he did not know the exact amount of the average wage of a young person but that a general wage increase had been recorded and that it must have had an effect on young people’s wages.