An application by the governing parties was accepted in the National Council on Tuesday with the votes of the ÖVP, Greens, SPÖ and FPÖ – and can therefore be decided in the National Council plenum in mid-December.
The phase 7 special care period ends on December 31st. In view of the high number of infections, it makes sense to extend the regulation, explained ÖVP MP Bettina Zopf. Phase 8 from January 1 to July 7, 2023 will be added with the corresponding amendment of an initiative application for the Employment Contract Law Adaptation Act. A period up to November 30, 2024 is provided for the assertion of employers’ claims for remuneration and for processing.
The NEOS no longer consider an extension necessary due to the end of the pandemic situation. Labor Minister Martin Kocher (ÖVP) countered that there were still contact restrictions due to the infection. Parents with care responsibilities must therefore continue to be given the option of special care. In addition, one does not know how the numbers will develop in winter.
The application deadline for the long-term short-time work bonus has also been extended – to June 30, 2023; the ÖVP, Greens and SPÖ agreed in the social committee. This is to ensure access for all those who are entitled to it. The one-time payment of 500 euros for those employees who had been on short-time work for at least ten months as a result of the pandemic in December 2021 was decided by the National Council at the end of last year.
In the meantime, short-time work hardly plays a role anymore, explained Kocher in the debate on the corresponding reports for August and September 2023. Currently, just over 3,000 people are on short-time work and less than 3,000 pre-registered for it.
Source: Nachrichten
