Filenews 13 April 2022 - by Adamos Adamou
The commitment of the government to introduce a national minimum wage before the end of its term was confirmed yesterday by the Minister of Labor Zeta Aimilianidou in a meeting she had with all the social partners in view of the meeting of the Labor Advisory Board on Tuesday. During yesterday's meeting, however, the Minister hinted that the time of implementation of the reform will depend on the developments in Ukraine, but reiterated that this will happen. According to information from "F", the minister clarified yesterday that the goal will be to link the national minimum wage with the median wage so that it gradually reaches 60% of the latter, noting that the beginning will be less than 60%. She also clarified that the national minimum wage will refer to the minimum hourly wage and that it will be promoted based on existing legislation and through the issuance of a decree. Today the minimum wage that applies to specific professions amounts to €870 and rises to €924 (gross) after a period of six months. The same information states that the Minister of Labour clarified yesterday that the national minimum will not be applied in the agricultural sector and for domestic helpers, while there was information about its adjustment mechanism, an issue that is expected to be discussed again in a week in the Labour Advisory Council. based on the agenda that the social partners - unions and employers' associations already have in front of them. At yesterday's meeting, the Minister of Labour also referred to the problem that sectors of the economy continue to face with the shortage of manpower and said that based on the results of the technical committees that functioned, it intends to give the green light for temporary employment permits from third countries. It was even mentioned on the subject that priority will be given to four- and five-star hotels that have been proven to have a problem. The permits, as mentioned, will be given under conditions for the protection of existing staff, while a ceiling will be set regarding the number of foreigners from third countries that each unit will be able to employ. In particular, it seems that thoughts are being made to set a ceiling so that the number of foreign workers from third countries that each unit can employ does not exceed 30% of its total staff. It was also mentioned in the meeting that those who have laid off staff or will lay off in the future will not be able to obtain permits for foreign staff or, if they do, they will be automatically revoked. It is worth noting that the same process for the employment of foreign staff that took place for the hotels continued yesterday morning with regard to the leisure centres where employers and unions considered specific requests. As it was found out, the president of the Federation of Leisure Center Owners Associations (OSIKA) Neophytos Thrasyvoulou told "F" that neither the local market nor the Ukrainian refugees for whom employment efforts are being made through the Ukrainian embassy can meet the needs. The only way is to employ staff from third countries. Finally, it is noted that the Deputy Minister of Social Welfare Anastasia Anthousi was also present for a large part of yesterday afternoon meeting, as the social partners were informed about several government policies on social issues that are promoted and are expected to be announced in the near future. from the Minimum Guaranteed Income and their integration into the labour market.
