Working time

In the face of a crisis, 66% of employees would recommend their company as a desirable employer.This is one of the main conclusions in the latest survey of ManpowerGroup Bulgaria, which analyzes the measures taken by employers in the country necessitated by the COVID-19 crisis, changes in daily business routine and their impact on employees in different industries.

All workers in Attica, Patra, Halkida, Rethymno and other areas of the country under strict lockdown will need to have with them new documents proving their employment as of Monday, as the state intends to crack down on people going out for reasons other than work despite the measures against the pandemic.

The Interior Ministry on Wednesday announced a series of measures that will affect public sector employees as a result of the lockdown starting on Thursday.

Key among the new measures is the requirement that public sector employees return to working remotely where and when this is possible, with only essential staff going into the office.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic more than 50% of Bulgarians have been working from home. A quarter of companies have introduced flexible working arrangements and plan to keep them after the crisis is over.

These new relationships between employers and staff require new regulations and the formation of a culture of "switching off from work" to protect employees' private time.

State revenues were 20% below target last month, according to the Finance Ministry's latest data, forcing it to revise its plans on the side of caution.

The government is likely to extend until September the ban on layoffs at businesses that will participate in the sixth phase of the cheap state loans program; the next "Deposit To Be Returned" stage is scheduled for March.

Complaints by workers about employers' foul play regarding the Christmas bonus have increased significantly this year, with a number of businesses failing to pay their staff an extra month's salary by last Monday, while others credited it to their employees' accounts and then asked them to return it in cash, according to the General Confederation of Greek Labor (GSEE).

At the moment, the working hours of cultural institutions are limited to 5 pm.
All programs in cultural institutions are conducted in accordance with the epidemiological measures in force.
In the meantime, Belgrade daily "Blic" reported that a new session of the Crisis Staff was scheduled for Monday.

Eight out of 10 enterprises and one in every three workers in the private sector are surviving on state support.

The Labor Ministry is planning to implement payouts by December 21 to a series of workers who in the last few months have found themselves in a peculiar labor status with contract suspension, the forced closure of the enterprises where they work, teleworking and special-purpose leaves in a bid to respond to the unprecedented conditions of the pandemic.