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As the BNS has already written, the “peasants” offered to the affected companies to pay subsidies for another four months after the withdrawal of the workers on leave: 70% during the first two months and 30% during the following two months. employee salaries. The grant could not exceed the monthly minimum wage (MMA) of € 642. The subsidy would be linked to the companies’ commitment to maintain employment.
The Social Democrats have proposed increasing the benefit to the self-employed from € 130, from € 260 to € 390, starting in April. Employees have suggested that it should be equated with MMA and that they should broaden the range of people who receive this benefit.
Employees did not support the proposal
After the presentation, the Seimas decided not to consider further the proposal of Aidas Gedvilas, a member of the Labor Party faction, to expand the list of self-employed workers and victims of COVID-19 by granting support to people whose activities were registered at least 12 ago. months. until the published quarantine.
Of the 129 voters, 60 were in favor, 5 against, and 64 abstentions. Still, it was agreed by consensus to return the project for improvement.
The bill proposed to remove the provision that only freelancers whose activities have been recorded for at least 3 months should receive support for losses incurred by COVID-19 and extend it to those whose activities have been “recorded within 12 months.” . . months before the date of the declaration of the state of emergency and quarantine, during which the restrictions on economic activities were announced and they were not terminated ”, it was possible to support.
According to the explanatory memorandum, in this case more self-employed could receive benefits without losing the opportunity to earn a living.
It was also proposed to adjust the part of the Employment Law, which establishes that “the benefit established for a self-employed person is paid monthly for the previous calendar month and is equal to one of the minimum consumption needs for the current year calculated in the Republic of Lithuania in accordance with the procedure established by law.
Instead, it is proposed that the benefit for the self-employed is equal to the minimum wage.
Mindaugas Lingė, a member of the Lithuanian Christian National-Democratic Union (TS-LKD) faction, asked A. Gedvilas to evaluate whether the proposed support model is socially correct.
“You take the monthly minimum wage (MMA) as a starting point; it is currently 642 euros in Lithuania. But you know that people work for the minimum wage and are still tax deductible, so they get much less and they get those benefits every month by paying high taxes.
At the same time, it is expanding the circle of the self-employed, so that even a person who had the opportunity to register for work a day before the pandemic would receive 642 euros per month. In your opinion, is the system you are proposing socially fair? “, I ask.
In response, Mr. Gedvil noted that the proposed benefit could be deducted.
“Perhaps I will say that the MMA could be calculated tax-free, as a profit. Since we are talking about a benefit, we equate that amount with the satisfaction of minimum needs.
I must add that the self-employed have had much higher incomes all the time, and are in a difficult situation where the government prohibits them and we pay a benefit equal to the poverty line and really insufficient to cover all the needs, even the minimum ones ” , He said.
Will consider a proposal to increase the benefit for the self-employed
After the presentation, the Seimas decided to approve the proposal of Gintautas Paluckas, a member of the Social Democratic Group, to increase the benefit for the self-employed who cannot carry out activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Of the 131 voters, 68 were in favor, 6 against, and 57 abstentions.
It is proposed to increase the amount of the self-employment benefit to 1.5 minimum consumption needs (MVPD).
As stated in the explanatory memorandum of the project, in 2021 the amount of the minimum wage, after taxes, will be about 468 euros. The reform of the law proposes to increase the current level of support and bring it closer to 1.5 MVPD, which would amount to 390 euros per month.
Currently, the benefit for a self-employed person is paid monthly for the previous calendar month and is equal to one MVPD for the current year.
Justas Džiugelis, a member of the Lithuanian Christian National-Democratic Union (TS-LKD) faction, asked how much it would cost to support the self-employed.
“I see you are proposing that the (bill – ELTA) go into effect on April 1. You’ve probably thought about it and how much will it cost the state budget? Where do you plan to volunteer to take these funds? Or maybe you volunteer to borrow more? ”he asked.
Mr. Paluckas stated that the need for funds for the project will depend on the quarantine measures that are applied in the near future.
“In terms of specific costs, this is an equation with at least two unknowns: who will we continue to quarantine and for how long? Therefore, it can be debated in committees, as it will have financial implications. However, let’s not forget that today we have support programs and subsidies that are designed. Such a change would lead in parallel to other decisions, that is, the sample and the period of application of the quarantine measures, “he said.
For his part, Mykolas Majauskas, a member of the TS-LKD faction, against him, emphasized that the Government had already taken measures to solve the problems identified.
Once again, the government listens to the concerns expressed and has already made concrete decisions to increase the benefits for the self-employed. Those benefits are based on the taxes they pay. So there is a very clear element of transparency and motivation to pay taxes. Therefore, it seems to me that the compensations and benefits work, and they are already quite approved ”, he assured.
Will consider a “peasant” proposal for wage subsidies
After the presentation, the Seimas approved the proposal put forward by the members of the Lithuanian Peasants and Greens Union (LVŽS) faction to allocate additional subsidies to employers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic to pay their wages.
Of the 130 voters, 69 were in favor, 10 against, and 51 abstentions.
During the meeting, Mykolas Majauskas, a member of the National Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD) faction, emphasized that it is irresponsible to present a proposal to allocate additional funds for support without anticipation and generates unreasonable public expectations.
“Your offer would cost more than 200 million. And you were a minister in the government headed by Saul Skvernelis, there was no funding for these proposals. In the same way that no funding is foreseen in the 2021 report presented and adopted by the Government led by Ingrida Šimonytė. Budget.
Don’t you think it is irresponsible to propose to the Seimas decisions for which no funding is provided? Don’t you see the harm in raising public expectations for additional support, in the clear understanding that there is no funding for such measures and that they are unlikely to be implemented? “, I ask.
In response, Linas Kukuraitis noted that the budgets of both governments were planned in different ways and that the proposed support scheme would be almost a third cheaper than the amounts allocated for quarantine downtime.
“We plan budgets differently. We did not budget for these funds for pandemic management and they were not planned. He has chosen another way: include in the estimates. We plan to implement all necessary measures with the borrowed funds.
If we have more than 70 million. we can spend € a month on downtime, we have the money. (…) Our third and cheapest scheme to get people out of downtime to begin with, in my head, is a more attractive mechanism than keeping those hundreds of thousands of people in quarantine and a month after quarantine in downtime where they are. now because there are no incentives to leave, ”he said.
The reform of the law proposes that employers who are included in the list of taxpayers affected by COVID-19 published by the State Tax Inspectorate be granted and pay a salary subsidy for up to 4 months: 70% in the first and second month. salaries, but not more than the monthly minimum wage (MMA) approved by the Government, and 30 percent in the third and fourth months. of calculated salary, but not more than the government approved MMA.
The use of this measure would be linked to specific commitments to maintain at least 50% for 3 months. work places. The grant would be more intensive for small businesses with up to 10 employees and for businesses in the Green Fee and High Value Added Development course.
It is also proposed that the list of additional beneficiaries include the self-employed who are included in the list of taxpayers affected by COVID-19 published by the State Tax Inspection.
These changes, according to the bill, would help ensure a consistent return to the economy of companies affected by the coronavirus infection, of which there are around 70,000, as well as the return of workers currently in downtime.
It also aims to make it possible for freelancers to claim the benefits of a business license on specific days instead of months. Also, change the deadline for payment of the job search benefit from one month after the end of the quarantine to three months after the end of the quarantine, but no later than September 30 of this year.
According to the explanatory memorandum, during a stressful post-quarantine period, this would help provide a basic income for those who lost their jobs due to the pandemic (around 70,000 unemployed) but are actively searching for it.
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