Tripartite Commission against the new payment ways of the sick leave

The vice prime minister Valerian Cristea will require to the Government, on the request of the Tripartite Commission Government-Trade Unions-Patronages, to withdraw from the Parliament the draft on changing the Law of July 2004 on allowances for temporary labor incapacity and other benefits of social insurances, which stipulates new ways of paying employees’ sick leave. The members of the Tripartite Commission agreed that the Government should set from the start a control mechanism over the reality of providing the sick leaves and then to recommence the discussion upon the new ways of paying the sick leave. The vice-chairman of the Confederation „Solidaritatea”, Ion Pargaru, said that the unions also consider incorrect the fact of non-paying the first day of employee’s sick leave and the payment of the next 7 days by the employer. He noted that the state should institute from the start a control mechanism, in case when there are real suspicions that the employees, employers or doctors undertake illegal actions regarding the sick leaves. According to Pargaru, the aim of this decision was to decrease employees’ death rate, Government’s data showing that last year the costs of the Social Fund for paying the sick leaves have increased by 40%. According to him, in case when the number of sick leaves increased due to the real death rate of employees, the state should be concerned about the ways to improve employees’ working conditions or other factors influencing their health. During the meeting of the Tripartite Commission it was a rumor that a great number of young persons able to work have left abroad, and the majority of employees of the national economy are over 40, age that explains the increased number of sick leaves. The Patronages’ representative Igor Crapivca said that now, according to the legislation, the employers do not have the right not to pay the sick leaves even if they suspect something. Another representative of employers Axenti noted that the new ways of paying the sick leave hide in fact new taxes imposed to businessmen, fact determining them to hide a part of incomes and get into informal economy. Including certain expenses of the account of the Social Insurances Budget into that of employers would be correct if the businessmen are reduced the tax to the Social Fund, Axenti highlighted. According to changes made last week by the Government to the Law of July 2004 regarding the allowances for temporary labor incapacity and other social insurances benefits, the first day of employee’s sick leave is not paid, the employer being obliged to pay the next 7 days, and the rest of the sick leave would be paid by the Social Fund. The changes made by the Government also regard the establishment of a fixed amount of the sick allowance of 75% of the wage. The allowance will be 100% in case of maternity leave, cancer, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS patients.