EUR 10 billion has been allocated by the German government to help all those working, struggling with the consequences of the coronavirus crisis in Germany. This is a coronavirus stimulus to insure people have a livelihood.
“We are fighting for every job,” said Labor Minister Hubertus Heil. The Federal Employment Agency (BA) will receive funding to extend the current working rules on a reduced basis until at least the end of 2021.
Previously, it was planned to keep the shortened time until March 2021. “The current crisis is the deepest economic crisis of our generation it’s not over yet,” added the head of the German labour ministry.
The amount of the benefit due to the so-called shortened working time ( Kurzarbeitergeld )
Before the corona crisis broke out, the Federal Employment Agency (BA) subsidised workers’ wages up to 60 percent.
Early net pay or up to 67 percent in the case of receiving child benefit. In 2020, due to the difficult economic situation caused by the pandemic, BA is currently paying 70% of net wage or 77% if the employee has dependent children and receives child benefit for them.
In turn, from the 7th month of work in the shortened amount, BA pays 80 and 87 percent prior net wage. The compensation applies to all those who will be entitled to such a benefit by March 31, 2021.
The German Labor Minister explained that the Federal Employment Agency would need an additional EUR 10 billion to maintain the shortened work program. “They come from taxes, not social security contributions,” emphasized Hubertus Heil. According to Heil, BA’s initial € 26 billion financial resources are not yet exhausted, but are still declining.
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A proven way for the Germans to alleviate the crisis and unemployment
Germany has a proven way to alleviate the crisis and unemployment. It is a program that has saved the German economy twice in recent years.
The effects of the global coronavirus pandemic have hit the labour market hard, especially in tens of thousands of individual service companies. Companies operating in the field of transport, catering and production suffered in a short period of time.
The effect of these events is the expected rapid increase in unemployment as a result of plans to reduce employment in companies that record a drop in income.
Kurzarbeit’s abridged work program during the previous crisis of 2008-09 allowed a large number of companies and tens of thousands of employees to survive.
Source: Polskiobsewator.de, afronews