Workers are leaving work, Union says emergency package is not enough

Kosovo's Independent Private Sector Union states that many companies are dismissing workers at the time when the country is facing the COVID-19 pandemic. The same union, estimates that the emergency package approved by the Kosovo government is not enough to pay all private sector workers.

The chairman of this union, Yusuf Azemi, said through a media conference that many workers are leaving work, for which he called for a decision by the country's Government that would punish companies that violate the labour law.

And many workers face a lack of basic protective measures. During this period we have noted that many companies, a small number of people who are leaving their companies, are leaving workers individually and groupably, for which we have occasionally in many companies. Workers except to leave their jobs have begun the owners of companies to lower their workers' positions and offer you extra contracts in this period that we're already in. While the government of Kosovo has been advertising that workers who can even work from homes where opportunities are created and we have noticed that the departure of workers, even though it has been possible for many workers to do their jobs from homes, this company owners have not allowed. We have decisions which company owners have dismissed and of course the Government of Kosovo, I am strongly convinced that it will not stand up to the prime minister's presentation on this issue”, he said.

He said workers who are continuing their work are facing numerous problems, including those that cited lack of transportation. According to him, neither companies nor the state have been taken into the matter of passenger transport.

As for the emergency package approved by the government, Azemi said it is not enough to pay all private sector workers. He said there is also much uncertainty about what categories have been allocated about 400m euros for private sector workers' salaries.

He said he has given a proposal to have workers' salaries cut in the public sector and to have increases in the private sector.

With the package shared by private sector workers, 100 thousand workers can be separated for just two months, April and May, when it is known that we have over 300 thousand employees in the private sector, and we estimate that 100,000 are active in large companies and other services they perform. Somewhere over 250 thousand workers are out of the job. We have made a proposal that at least for the next two months perhaps a salary drop and some form become the level of private sector wages with the public sector and public sector salaries be reduced by 50 percent and private sector salaries increase by 50 percent”, he said.

Also, Azemi indicated that they have proposed the Government of Kosovo, to establish a reserve fund, with which all workers who are not involved in this phase will be paid.

“From the fund of around 180m euros, the Kosovo Government proposes that 20 per cent of this fund, which elsewhere amounts to 36m euros, remain as a reserve fund, because categories of workers who the Ministry of Finance and Government have not seen. Where there is no major dissatisfaction, it calls for this 36m-euro fund to remain the reserve fund for which the Government does not pre-empt. We have technical workers in all the QKMFs, at QKUK, who are present every day with doctors and I think it's not serious to become such a” division, he said.

Azma has also appealed to the owners of companies that are exercising their activity to provide workers and equip them with protective means.