Las personas en ERTE tendrán la consideración de colectivo prioritario para el acceso a las iniciativas de formación del sistema de formación profesional para el empleo en el ámbito laboral.

eldiario.es (29.09.2020) El Ministerio de Trabajo ha evitado la reducción de la cuantía de la prestación por desempleo de los trabajadores en ERTE pasados los seis meses en esta situación. Con la legislación vigente, aprobada con el Gobierno de Mariano Rajoy, la cantidad se reducía del 70% al 50% de la base reguladora, una reducción que se anula y se mantiene la cantidad del 70%.

eldiario.es (29.09.2020) Los ERTE por fuerza mayor existentes se prorrogan hasta el 31 de enero. Los ERTE por causas objetivas –los llamados ETOP– seguirán siendo aplicables hasta el término que tuvieran establecido y se podrán prorrogar si se solicita ante la autoridad laboral, con las condiciones establecidas en el primer decreto que reguló esta herramienta laboral (y que no daban derecho a que los expedientes ETOP se beneficiaran de ayudas a la cotización). Esta prórroga supone que se mantienen los ERTE de suspensión total o parciales, según lo que estuviera aprobado, y sus trabajadores seguirán percibiendo su prestación por desempleo. Sin embargo, hay un cambio en los expedientes en vigor: las ayudas a la cotización que venían percibiendo hasta el momento. A partir del 1 de enero, las exoneraciones a la Seguridad Social se ciñen a tres supuestos: las destinadas a las empresas "especialmente afectadas por la pandemia", los ERTE de rebrote por cierre y los ERTE de rebrote por limitación de actividad. Así, hay empresas que pueden perder la ayuda a la cotización en sus ERTE, que era del 35% y del 25% en septiembre, pero pueden mantener a empleados suspendidos en expedientes de regulación temporal.

Social Security Agency (18.04.2020) On April 18 and May 15, Poland's government amended its Anti-Crisis Shield (Tarcza Antykryzysowa) program to expand eligibility for temporary social security contribution reductions. Under the amended program, employers with 10 to 49 employees as of February 29 can receive a 50-percent reduction in the contributions they owe for March, April, and May. In addition, social cooperatives and sole proprietorships are exempt from paying contributions for March, April, and May, and certain self-employed persons with income exceeding 300 percent of the projected average national monthly earnings for 2020 are exempt for April and May. Previously, only micro-enterprises (firms with up to nine employees) and self-employed persons with income up to 300 percent of the projected average national monthly earnings were eligible for the 3 months of contribution relief.

KPMG Global (01.05.2020) To reduce costs and improve cash flow immediately, social security contribution rate will be reduced with 4 percent of the total contribution rate of 14.1% assumable for the salary payments in May and June.  Some areas in Norway pay 0%. These areas will receive a subsidy equal to 4 % of the employer social security contribution base. 

conomictimes.indiatimes.com (15.06.2020) The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) will reduce its EPF contribution rate from 12 per cent to 10 per cent for both employers and employees for the months of months May 2020, June 2020 and July 2020. It is applicable to all class of establishments covered under the EPF & MP Act, 1952 except the establishments like Central and State Public sector enterprises or any other establishments owned or controlled of the Central govt or State govt.The reduced rate is also not applicable to establishments eligible for PMGKY benefits, since the entire employees EPF contributions (12% of wages) and employers' EPF & EPS contribution (12% of wages), totalling 24% of the monthly wages is being contributed by the central government. There is no change in the EPF administrative charges (0.5% of EPF wages subject to minimum prescribed) and EDLI contributions (0.5% of wages) both payable by employers. The reduced rate of EPF contributions to 10% will not reduce the pension contributions or benefits.

KPMG Global (27.05.2020) Reduction in the penalty for late payment of social security contributions payable by employers in the amount of 24.8 percent of their employees’ wages (employer’s contributions) for the calendar months of May to July 2020. If the contributions due for these months are paid by 20 October 2020, the employer will be required to pay only 20 percent of the standard penalty for late payment stipulated by the Insurance Premiums Act.2 The reduced penalty will thus correspond to approximately 4 percent interest rate per annum. To obtain the reduction, the employer must submit monthly social security overviews and remit employees’ social security contributions by the regular deadlines. The government’s proposal does not require employers to prove a negative impact of the COVID-19 extraordinary measures, and the reduced penalty for late payment of the employers’ social security contributions is thus available to all employers.

Socialsecurity.be (12.10.2020) The increased use of teleworking due to the Coronavirus will not be taken into account in determining the applicable social security legislation. This period will be neutralised with effect from 13 March 2020. The envisaged expiry date of this measure is 31 December 2020, but this date may be revised according to the Corona measures.

covid19.gov.gg (14.09.2020)

The Policy & Resources Committee has agreed to continue the payroll co-funding scheme for the most impacted sectors and businesses until the end of 2020, having previously been extended to the end of September. However, there will be a further reduction of those eligible for support once the island moves into phase 5c of its exit from lockdown strategy. While no date has been decided to move to phase 5c, it is expected within the period of this three month extension to States funded support.

jointsdgfund.org (10.09.2020)

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) signs a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Government of Saint Lucia to support an expansion of the nation’s Public Assistance Programme (PAP) by 1,000 households as part of the nation’s 2019 coronavirus (COVID-19) response.

Employers may renew or extend fixed-term employment contracts until 31 December 2020 without justification (in derogation of art. 19 of Legislative Decree 81/2015 (which provides for the obligation to state specific reasons for fixed-term employment relationships of more than 12 months). Extension or renewal without justification is permitted only once, and is permitted only within the maximum duration provided for by law, with the result that the relationship may not exceed a total duration of 24 months.

gazzettaufficiale.it (14.08.2020)

The Decree Law 14 has introduced modifications in August 2020 to the use of the existing wage guarantee schemes (Cassa Integrazione Guadagni Ordinaria, CIGO, Cassa integrazione in deroga, CID, Cassa Integrazione Guadagni Straordinaria, CIGSand Fondo di Integrazione Salariale, FIS) for temporary suspensions of work or reductions of working time due to the pandemic : 18 weeks of cassa integrazione are granted between the period 13 July - 31 December. If the first 9 weeks do not involve any cost for the company, the second tranche is subject to an additional contribution to be paid to the INPS, calculated on the overall salary that would have been due to the employee for the hours not worked due to reduction of activity.

Jizokuka-kyufukin (01.09.2020) One time subsidy for small and medium-sized enterprises and sole proprietors whose  sales of any month from January to December reduced by at least 50% compared to that of last year. The amount is 2,000,000 yen maximum for SMEs, and 1,000,000 yen maximum for sole proprietors including freelances. Application can be done online during 1st May 2020 to 15th January 2021.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (25.09.2020) Covered month for the support fund and allowance were extended from September 2020 to December 2020. Similarly, the deadlines for application for each month were simplified and extended to 31th December 2020 for months before September; to  31th March 2021 for October, November and December.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (14.07.2020) 80% of the wage before taking the leave (maximum daily amount 11 ,000 yen) will be paid according to the record of the leave forced to be taken. (limited to the leave taken between April 1, 2020 and September 30, 2020.) However the following two main conditions and others are required. 1. Employees of small and medium sized companies who were/are on leave during the period mentioned above due to the instruction of the employer. 2. Those who have not being paid their wages (or leave allowance) for the leave mentioned in 1.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (09.10.2020) Single-parent temporary special allowance is paid to single-parent households if;

1. they receives child-rearing allowances of June 2020;

2. their child-rearing allowances of June 2020 are suspended due to receiving public pensions; or

3. their income dropped as low as child-rearing allowance beneficiaries.

Basic amount of the special allowance is 50,000 yen. 30,000 yen is added per child  for the second and subsequent child and another 50,000 yen for a household whose income dropped due to Covid-19. The government pays for the funding and local municipalities administers the special allowance. The payment for the household who fulfil condition 1 is to be implemented in August.

Cabinet office (01.05.2020) Special supplement of 10,000 yen per a child is automatically added to child benefits. Beneficiaries who received a child benefit for April 2020 are entitled to the supplement. The government pays for the funding and local municipalities administers the supplement as well as original child benefit.

Development Pathways (08.10.2020) COVID-19 has sparked a mass of interest in “basic income”. South Africa’s Minister of Social Development has advocated it; Spain has promised it on a permanent basis; UNDP has argued for it globally (at least on a temporary basis)... But the more you look at basic income, the less attractive it seems, at least from a social protection perspective.

BBC News (07.10.2020) Extreme poverty is set to rise this year for the first time in more than two decades, with coronavirus expected to push up to 115 million people into that category, the World Bank has said.

capac (22.09.2020) Since September 1, 2020, the rules for temporary corona unemployment have changed.  Only sectors and companies recognized as particularly affected can apply for temporary corona unemployment until December 31, 2020. You can therefore only submit a request for temporary unemployment for corona force majeure if you are working for the employer's account: which falls within a sector particularly affected by the coronavirus crisis  whose company is particularly affected by the coronavirus crisis.

cgdev.org (Sept 2020) Many countries have launched unprecedented relief packages to cushion the economic and social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This short review considers some initial lessons emerging from selected countries around the use of digital technology to implement these government-to-people (G2P) social transfer programs. Information is still limited on how well the programs have functioned; in particular, there is a dearth of rapid demand-side survey evidence on the experience of beneficiaries receiving transfers and the likely magnitudes of inclusion and exclusion errors. Nevertheless, the emerging picture provides some indications of how investments in digital systems and their deployment along the social transfer value chain have been facilitating the response. Lessons from the COVID-19-related scale-up of social assistance can be harnessed by developing countries to rethink and strengthen the architecture of social protection systems in the future.