By Chrysostomos Tsoufis

Crystallized the picture about the new unemployment benefit after the intervention of the Minister of Labor Domnas Michailidou on SKAI TV and the show of Giorgos Avtias.

The new unemployment benefit it will be increased, rewarding and front-loading.

Increased: What is clarified by the Ministry of Labor is that the new unemployment benefit it will not be lower for anyone.

On the contrary, and according to the planning that is being done, in addition to the basic benefit which is equal to 55% of the minimum wage increased by 10% for each protected member, it will be given to those who become unemployed after many years of insurance – and therefore contributions to the system – a bonus that will increase the total aid. “It is not possible for an unemployed person with 25 years of previous work and one with 3 years to receive the same benefit,” typically say officials of the Ministry of Labor.

Reciprocal: According to some of the scenarios that have fallen on the table, the limit of consecutive years of insurance to secure the “bonus” is expected to be 5 or 6 years. Based on the principle of reciprocity, the bonus for someone with 7 years of continuous work is different and the bonus for someone with 15 or 20 years is another, higher.

According to the same scenario regular allowance and bonus will not be able to exceed the current basic salary, so based on this assumption the average bonus is expected to be around €200.

Front weights : The unemployed person will receive a higher amount during the first months of the unemployment period, which will decrease over the months. However, the total amount of the regular benefit will not change.

In other words, based on today’s data, the amount of €5,148 will not “break” to €429 over 12 months.

On the contrary, the unemployed will receive e.g. 70% of the minimum wage in the first quarter i.e. €546, in the second quarter 60% and €468, in the third quarter 50% and €390 and in the last quarter 40% and €312 (These amounts will the bonus for those with many consecutive years of insurance must also be added.

The front load that the Ministry of Labor wants to introduce has two explanations. On the one hand, the desire is for the new unemployment benefit to work as an incentive for the unemployed to return to the labor market as quickly as possible. On the other hand, to mitigate the “shock” that the loss of his job brings to the life of the unemployed, especially in the first months.

The long-term unemployment benefit which is given with strict income and financial general criteria for more than 12 months to a few unemployed people, is up for repeal.

The exact parameters of the new unemployment benefit are expected to be determined in the coming days when the OECD, which has undertaken the preparation of a special relevant study, will reach its proposal – perhaps within the month it will submit it to the attention of the Greek government.

The new unemployment benefit will be applied based on the new minimum wage which will be effective from April 1st after the proposal that Domna Michailidou will make to the cabinet no later than March 22.

In the first phase it will operate as a pilot with the financing of the Recovery Fund locally and then throughout the territory.