Regional Government creates measures to support maintenance of hired workers in companies
The Regional Government, through the Vice-Presidency, has created the Extraordinary Labour Stabilisation Measure (MEET), which aims to provide additional support to Azorean companies to ensure the maintenance of jobs.
This new measure consists of an additional incentive for companies to maintain their workers hired under fixed-term contracts, thus creating an additional incentive for the renewal of these contracts or their integration into the company's staff.
The Extraordinary Labour Stabilisation Measure consists of the creation of another support directed to companies. The amount is stipulated at 6,000 Euros per worker hired under a fixed-term contract that is integrated into the company's staff from March 16, or at 1,800 Euros per worker whose fixed-term contract is renewed by the company for another nine months after it ends.
This new support, which can be combined with all other support measures for the maintenance of jobs, aims to reinforce incentives for companies to renew contracts or integrate workers whose contracts ended this year into their staff.
With this new measure, the Regional Government creates another incentive for Azorean entrepreneurs and workers in order to minimise the economic consequences caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, reinforcing its purpose of protecting jobs and safeguarding family income.
This measure, published today in the Official Journal, introduces an exceptional and transitional mechanism, through the granting of financial support to companies. In turn, they are required to maintain all the jobs they had in January and February of this year.
In this context and given the current situation, the Regional Government considers that encouraging the stabilisation of workers hired under fixed-term contracts is of paramount importance, as it will contribute to reverse their vulnerable situation while reinforcing support for companies to maintain their level of employment.
The Extraordinary Labour Stabilisation Measure, aimed at private entrepreneurs, including those in the social sector, will support the payment of salaries for conversions and contract renewals in the period between March 16 and December 31, 2020, covering fixed-term contracts initiated prior to March 16 of this year and contracts ending in this time period.
Applications for MEET must be made exclusively by electronic means at https://portaldoemprego.azores.gov.pt/, through the available form, and submitted between June 1, 2020 and January 15, 2021.
This measure falls within a series of measures implemented by the Regional Government to reinforce and complement national measures, supporting the liquidity of companies through incentives for the maintenance of employment levels prior to the epidemic outbreak.