The government will approve on Friday a redistribution of the 400-euro special unemployment benefit that jobless workers receive for six months after using up their primary allotment of benefits.
In reality, it was necessary to make changes to the subsidy. The changes will not affect the national budget, because spending in some areas will be offset but cuts to other areas. Further, the changes will only affect a small number of people.
According to data from June, 200,000 jobless workers are receiving the extra benefit right now, and between 20,000 and 30,000 more become eligible for it each month. The proposed changes will increase benefits for households with more dependents and incentivize those who actively search for work with the goal of doing away with the subsidy quality of the benefit and trying to make it closer to the active employment policies that the EU demands.
The reallocation increases benefits for those who need them most and also stiffens the requirements for getting benefits. People still living at home won?t be able to receive the benefits and take more consideration of a worker?s personal assets when deciding how much benefits they will receive. Workers will need to be actively looking for work and to participate in job training according to guidelines that are followed in other European nations with the collaboration of placement agencies.
In order to keep protecting the most disadvantaged groups, avoid fraud and fuel job searches, subsidies like this should stay tied to rigorous requirements, clearly define who receives them and not last for longer than a set period of time. If this reform can address these criteria, then the cutbacks would make sense.
