Background information

As the horeca sector is confronted with another series of sanitary restrictions (like obligatory closing at 23:00). The federal government has decided to support the sector via the existing sectoral fund. This financial support to companies within the sector is intended to ensure that employees (who often are faced with temporary unemployment) receive a full end-of-year bonus.

Content of measure

The government has decided to invest €66 million into the sectoral fund of the horeca sector to be distributed by the fund to the companies active within the sector. This intervention avoids employees being financially affected twice, after a period of temporary unemployment. The sectoral fund is managed by the social partners jointly, so it is ultimately their responsibility to distribute the funds to the companies within the sector (which in turn distribute it to their employees).

In 2020 the government also invested €167 million in the sector, a part of that investment was also intended to finance end-of-year bonuses for employees within the sector that year.

Use of measure

Unknown.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Employees in standard employment	Sector specific set of companies	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Social partners jointly	National funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Unknown	Unknown
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Social partners jointly
• Main level of involvement: Sectoral or branch level

Involvement

The sector fund for the horeca sectors (as do all sectoral funds) are managed by the social partners jointly. They are responsible for the management of the fund and therefore the distribution of the funding that the government provided.

Views and reactions

The social partners agree with the government's decision to support the employees and employers that are active within the sector and have been heavily affected by the virus and the accompanying measures.

Sectors and occupations

This case is not occupation-specific.

Sources

• 06 August 2021: Support Horeca sector (www.vlaio.be)