Background information

This bundle of measures foresees the support of businesses and workers after the end period of the supporting measures currently implemented for businesses and workers through vocational and educational activities and subsidy of the wage cost for the employment of different groups of the unemployed as well between November 2020 - March 2021.

Content of measure

The three measures of the bundle are:

1. The Cabinet appointed the Human Resource Development Authority of Cyprus (HRDA) to announce and implement from November 2020 to March 2020 special vocational and educational schemes for workers targeting 1,000 SMEs that have been subjected to significant reduction of their turnover. The training should last for one week approximately for every month of implementation with a total number of 200 training hours.

2. Similarly, the HRDA shall design and implement vocational training schemes for the unemployed in the Hotel and Catering labour sector.

3. The Cabinet also appointed the Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurances to announce and implement schemes for the subsidy of the wage cost for the employment of different groups of the unemployed for the period after October 2020 to March 2021 as follows:

4. Incentives’ Scheme for the Employment of the Unemployed

5. Incentives’ Scheme for the Employment Restoration of Former Prisoners
6. Incentives’ Scheme for the Employment of Young Persons 15 – 29 years of age Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET)
7. Incentives’ Scheme for the Training of Young Persons 15 – 29 years of age Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET).

Use of measure

The special vocational and educational scheme targets 1,000 SMEs with a budget of €14 million for the period plus €7 million for the scheme that addresses the Hotel and Catering Sector. For the schemes addressing the subsidy of the unemployment the total budget is €35 million of which €17 million for the scheme of the employment of the unemployed, €4 million the employment restoration former prisoners, €10 million for the employment of NEET youngsters and €4 million for the vocational training of NEET youngsters.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Employees in standard employment Unemployed Youth (18-25) in employment	SMEs	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Trade unions Employers' organisations	European Funds National funds

Social partners

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

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Consulted	Consulted
Form	Consultation through tripartite or bipartite social dialogue bodies	Consultation through tripartite or bipartite social dialogue bodies

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

• Social partners jointly
• Main level of involvement: Peak or cross-sectoral level

Involvement

The Minster of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurances requested the participation of social partners during the designing phase of this bundle of measures. The Minister held separate consultation meetings with the major trade union representatives (the Pancyprian Federation of Labour, PEO, Cyprus Labour Confederation, SEK and the Democratic Labour Federation of Cyprus, DEOK) and the representatives of the employers’ organizations (the Cyprus Employers and Industrialists Federation, OEB and the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry, CCCI).

Social partners contributed by providing feedback to initial proposal of the Minister, the submission of their own proposals and the finalization of the details of the bundle.

Views and reactions

It seems that both trade unionists and employers' organizations are satisfied with the outcome of the consultation process. They believe that the measures announced are going in the right direction for the support of workers in maintaining their jobs, the unemployed to enter the labour market and the businesses to stay afloat.

Sources

• 03 September 2020: Supporting measures for workers and businesses (www.pio.gov.cy)