Background information

Member companies of the Employers Confederation across sectors reported disruptions linked to developments in the Middle East. Reported impacts included higher material costs, reduced access to materials and supply chain disruptions, with potential long-term economic effects. The Employers Confederation argued that the crisis in Iran would affect all sectors through price pressures, reduced availability of goods and increased contractual risks in public procurement. It submitted a letter to the government outlining five proposals to mitigate negative impacts on businesses.

Content of measure

The Employers Confederation proposed five measures to mitigate the impact of energy price increases:

1. Establish a regular crisis council to address crises, develop scenario-based plans and ensure effective information exchange.
2. Identify solutions for existing public procurement contracts affected by sudden increases in material costs or supply chain disruptions, including avoiding penalty fines, introducing price indexation, and reopening procurement procedures where necessary.
3. Consider temporarily reducing or suspending interest on deferred tax liabilities and providing financial instruments to address liquidity problems caused by the crisis.
4. Prepare for the upcoming winter to ensure reasonable energy prices.
5. Regularly monitor crisis measures in key export markets (Nordics, Latvia and Lithuania) in order to adapt Estonian policy responses and maintain competitiveness.

There were no exact numbers proposed in monetary terms.

Use of measure

Not applicable, as this is a proposal.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Does not apply to workers	Applies to all businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
Employers' organisations	No special funding required

Social partners

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

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	No involvement	Consulted
Form	Not applicable	Any other form of consultation, institutionalised (as stable working groups or committees) or informal

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

• Only employers' organisations
• Main level of involvement: Peak or cross-sectoral level

Involvement

This is a social partner iniative. Employers Confederation is the peak level social partner in Estonia representing employers.

Views and reactions

Other social partners have not expressed views on this proposal.

Sources

• 16 April 2026: Tööandjate kiri Valitsusele (employers.ee)