The new employment package submitted to parliament by the government concerns millions of people. The proposal will be debated in parliament this week and, if approved, will introduce major changes in the employment area.
Details of the New Employment Package
The new employment package presented to the Grand National Assembly contains several key provisions. If the plan, which will be reviewed by the Budget Commission, is approved, it will create new opportunities in the labor market. The short-term work allowance and the normalization support that were granted due to the coronavirus outbreak are scheduled to end on December 31, 2020. Under the proposal, however, the president would be authorized to extend the durations of the short-term work allowance and the normalization support until June 30, 2021.
Significant employer supports are provided particularly for those who lost their jobs between January 1, 2019 and April 17, 2020, the date on which the dismissal ban began. The most important aspect of this support is to remedy the hardship experienced by people who were working informally and therefore were excluded from rights such as unemployment benefits, cash wage support and short-term work allowance. Accordingly, whether insured or uninsured, those who became unemployed during the relevant period will be able to apply to return to their former workplaces within 30 days from the law’s entry into force in order to request re-employment. If former employers accept these applications, they will receive support of 44.15 TL per day, up to 1,324 TL per month, for workers covered by the dismissal ban. This support will be offset against the employer’s payroll contributions for other workers. The support and payment amounts are also expected to increase in line with any year-end rise in the minimum wage.
Cash Wage Support Increases
The bill also contains important provisions regarding cash wage support. If an employer who rehired a former employee places that employee on unpaid leave for economic reasons, the employee will receive monthly cash wage support of 1,168 TL. If the unemployed person’s application to return to their last workplace is rejected, they may qualify for monthly assistance of 1,030 TL during the dismissal ban period. This amount will be paid from the unemployment fund and, to be eligible, the unemployed person’s household cannot include anyone receiving a pension, short-term work allowance, or unemployment benefit, nor a salaried worker, civil servant or registered self-employed person, and must not be receiving regular state assistance. After the dismissal ban ends, employers will be required to keep at least half of the rehired workers employed until the end of the support period.
Informal Workers to Be Insured
One notable feature of the proposal concerns workers who previously worked informally. Under the incentive, employers who agree to register previously uninsured workers will receive significant support. Employers who register uninsured workers they had dismissed between January 1, 2019 and April 17, 2020 within the 30-day period will not face any retroactive monetary penalties. No premium debts, including unemployment fund contributions for the period the worker was uninsured, will be applied.
Workers who are newly registered and brought into the insurance system will be considered to have waived their previous claims except for salary and rights equivalent to salary. Normally, uninsured workers can file a lawsuit within five years to obtain a retroactive recognition of their service period, and the employer can be held liable for contributions for the uninsured period. Under this proposal, such retroactive claims would become invalid, and once a worker is registered and insured, they will no longer be able to bring these kinds of retrospective cases.