Furloughs to be extended until May 31

A legislative act is to provide for the extension of the suspension of labor contracts for companies harmed by the coronavirus containment measures until May 31. Thursday would mark the end of the first phase of the measure, which concerned enterprises that were ordered by the government to close on March 13.

The extension will concern both businesses that remain closed after a public authority order for as long as that is valid, and those damaged by the containment measures based on the activity code numbers (KAD) the Finance Ministry has set, though not for 45 days but for one month, till end-May.

The government plan for the gradual lifting of restrictions requires that the enterprises to reopen restore a certain number of employees to full employment, with the legislative act expected to set the minimum of staff to return to active employment at each company at 50...