Babiš Government to Cut Unemployment Benefits: Experts Skeptical

Andrej Babiš's government has submitted a bill to the Chamber of Deputies that would reduce unemployment benefits. According to the Ministry of Labour, payments during the first two months would drop from the current 80% to 65% of a person's previous net salary. The middle portion of the benefit period would stay at 50%, while the final stage would actually rise slightly, from 40% to 45%.

At the same time, the upper ceiling on benefits is being lowered from 80% to 60% of the national average wage. In effect, support levels would return to where they stood last year, before the previous cabinet of Petr Fiala (ODS) raised them in an effort to motivate people to search for work more actively.

The Ministry's Reasoning

"Given that labour market demand for workers remains high, returning to a more moderate level of support seems reasonable," explains Labour Minister Aleš Juchelka (ANO). He noted that one of the motives behind the change is the rising cost of benefits following the current adjustment — the government expects to save up to 5 billion crowns next year.

Personal Experience and Expert Opinion

Prague resident Štěpánka Ťalská Dreslerová knows firsthand how difficult finding a job can be. Last year she sent out twenty CVs but was invited to only two interviews. "The rest replied that I wasn't suitable for the position. And a month later, one of those same job listings was posted again," she recalled. Her job search took four months, and she can't shake the feeling that her age played a role in the rejections — she is over fifty. "Yes, there may be plenty of vacancies. The problem is that employers didn't want to hire me for them," she added.

Experts who have long studied the labour market and social policy are also skeptical about the upcoming changes.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz