EC President Proposes Short-Term Work Scheme To Aid EU Economies During COVID-19 Crisis

EC President Proposes Short-Term Work Scheme to Aid EU Economies During COVID-19 Crisis

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed on Wednesday launching a new short-term work (SURE) initiative to support the hardest-hit countries in the European Union by saving millions of jobs, protecting employees and employers, as well as guaranteeing the restart of the European economy amid the coronavirus pandemic

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st April, 2020) European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed on Wednesday launching a new short-term work (SURE) initiative to support the hardest-hit countries in the European Union by saving millions of jobs, protecting employees and employers, as well as guaranteeing the restart of the European economy amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"We have learned the lessons from the financial crisis in 2008. Member states who had this instrument helped millions of people to stay in the jobs and companies to go through the financial crisis with their employees. This is SURE. State-supported short-time work. It has mitigated the effects of the recession, kept people in work and enabled companies to return to the markets with renewed vigor. And the idea is simple, if there are no orders and companies run out of work because of a temporary external shock like corona they should not lay off their workers," von der Leyen said in a video address posted on Twitter.

The European Commission president added that in the spare time, workers can learn new skills that will benefit them and their employers.

"This way ... people can continue to pay their rents, and buy what they need and this also has a positive impact on the economy. Thanks to SURE more people will keep their jobs during the coronacrisis and they will go back to full work as soon as the lockdown will be over when the demand picks up again and the orders come back," von der Leyen said.

The European Commission head went on to say that the initiative, which would be presented later this week, would help countries that have suffered the most, such as Italy and Spain.

"This is crucial to restart Europe's economic engine without delay. This week the European Commission will propose a new instrument to support short-time work, it will help in the countries the most hit and it is guaranteed by all member states. This is European solidarity in action. It is for Italy, Spain and others and it is for Europe's future," von der Leyen noted.

Europe has recorded over 420,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases, according to an update by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control published earlier in the day. Italy has the highest amount of cases in the region, followed by Spain and Germany. Across the whole of Europe, there have been 29,350 confirmed deaths.