Pandemic parental benefit is back. Together with more aid for coronavirus-stricken businesses

Employers and the self-employed will have an option to receive first aid for longer.

Milan Krajniak, Labour MinisterMilan Krajniak, Labour Minister (Source: SITA)

The cabinet approved three types of aid at its October 28 session, with the aim of helping people and businesses deal with the pandemic. This includes the pandemic parental benefit, the SOS subsidy and the first aid package.

SkryťTurn off ads
Article continues after video advertisement
SkryťTurn off ads
Article continues after video advertisement

Pandemic parental benefit

This benefits will be provided to parents who will not be entitled to parental benefit because their child turns three years of age ( or six years if they have long-term health problems) during the crisis.

The benefit should include children in substitute care or if three years passed since the first decision on entrusting a child to the substitute care of an authorised person was adopted, the TASR newswire reported.

SkryťTurn off ads

These people should receive the benefit at the same amount as the ordinary parental benefit they had been receiving, until the crisis is over. The Labour Ministry expects that the number of people drawing the benefit will increase by 4,340 a month.

Contributions for disabled people

Under the new rules, it will be possible to provide a financial contribution for severely disabled people even if they do not submit evidence about how much they spent on transport. This equals 16.7 percent of subsistence wage for one adult person.

This concerns severely disabled people who will not travel in person, but will use delivery services to secure food and other things necessary for their life, the ministry explained.

It expects that the contribution may be paid to some 3,250 every month, TASR wrote.

SkryťTurn off ads

The new rules also extend the list of reasons due to which the material need benefit will not be reduced.

The SOS subsidy

A big aid overview: Am I entitled for OČR or other financial relief? (FAQ) Read more 

The cabinet restored the SOS subsidy, giving the declaration of national emergency as reason. It should amount to €300 and be provided to some 10,000 applicants each month, the Labour Ministry expects.

Those who have lost their income due to the crisis situation and cannot ask for any other aid, like the project to preserve employment or aid from the social insurance systems, state social support and social support, will be able to apply for the subsidy.

The cabinet specified conditions for providing subsidies on meals during the pandemic for children attending kindergartens and primary schools.

The proposal cancels the cap for subsidies to humanitarian aid support, with the aim to create a space that makes it possible to provide the subsidy to social care providers, who had to increase their costs due to the pandemic and the current limit of €15,000 does not allow them to cover all their expenses reimbursed by the ministry.

This includes the “infection benefit” for employees working in a facility that needs to be in quarantine, as well as the payment for securing appropriate accommodation and food to these employees, and the purchase of hygienic and protective means.

Moreover, the subsidy can now be used to purchase nutrition supplements worth €20 for each receiver and the employee of the selected kind of the social services for a period of five months.

First aid prolonged

Employers and the self-employed will be able to ask for the financial compensation within the First Aid project until March 2021. At the same time, the provided subsidies will be increased.

The changes will apply to requests submitted for October 2020, TASR reported.

The offices will start sending amendments to all 120,000 applicants for the aid on November 2, based on which they will be entitled to higher compensations.

The labour offices will then start accepting the statements from November 9.

More money towards wages and new support for restaurants and hotels. New aid plan has been revealed Read more 

Labour Minister Milan Krajniak (Sme Rodina) stressed that the applicants can ask for higher compensation for all October, not only the middle of the month, when the measures are toughened up, as reported by TASR.

Employers who closed or had to close their shops can now ask for aid also for employees hired after March 1, 2020, but no later than September 2, 2020.

At the same time, the group of applicants for compensation now includes subjects and the self-employed who started their business after February 1, 2020, but no later than September 2, 2020.

The contribution will increase from the current 80 percent of the average income per employee to 80 percent of the total labour cost of an employee for the time the employers had problems. At the same time, the period during which they will be required to keep the employee under employment will shorten from two months to one month during the national emergency.

The group of the self-employed will be expanded by those required to pay sickness and pension insurance after July 1, 2020. At the same time, the condition banning these people from having both trade licence and an employment contract will be cancelled.

The cabinet approves plan for permanent kurzarbeit Read more 

The contribution will increase, too, based on how much their net income for a given month dropped. Starting in October, the sum for a drop of 20 to 39.99 percent will be €270, while if the drop was between 40 and 59.99 percent, they will receive €450. If the drop was between 60 and 79.99 percent, the contribution will be €630, and if the drop was 80 percent and more, the benefit will be €810.

The support of employers affected by the national emergency has changed. The group was extended by those who launched their business after February 1, 2020, but no later than September 2, 2020. They are required to keep employees for at least one month during the national emergency to receive the aid.

Contributions will increase. For example, compensation to the employee's wage will increase to 80 percent of the total labour cost, but no more than €1,100.

The cap for the contribution to compensate some wage costs per employee based on the drop in revenues will increase to €810 per employee.

The group of the self-employed entitled to the aid will be extended by subjects established after February 1, 2020, but no later than September 2, 2020. The contribution will increase to €315, but this sum will be reduced by the net income from employment for a given month.

How much it will cost

These measures for October-December 2020 should cost €389.9 million, which is €191.8 million more than the original sum.

The extension of the project by three more months will require €201.8 million.

“These expenses are part of the approved financial limit of €1.38 billion,” the Labour Ministry summed up, as quoted by TASR..

Top stories

Stock image.

Twice as many Ukrainians work in Slovakia now than before the Russian invasion.


Píšem or pišám?

"Do ľava," (to the left) I yelled, "Nie, do prava" (no, to the right), I gasped. "Dolšie," I screamed. "Nie, nie, horšie..." My Slovak girlfriend collapsed in laughter. Was it something I said?


Matthew J. Reynolds
Czech biochemist Jan Konvalinka.

Jan Konvalinka was expecting a pandemic before Covid-19 came along.


SkryťClose ad