The avalanche of employment regulations undertaken by companies since March 14 to deal with the coronavirus crisis is reaching unknown heights, according to the UGT and CCOO unions , which are asking the government to study measures to block layoffs.

According to Sordo, Spain is facing "unknown figures of fall in GDP and employment". Neither the Ministry of Labor, nor the Ministry of Social Security, nor the Bank of Spain, nor the unions offer data on an impact that, they say, will affect "millions". The reality has indicated, it is above the most pessimistic forecasts.

"The priority is to prevent destruction of the productive fabric and employment for the millions of people who will be affected. The current measures are clearly insufficient," they have indicated. " The layoffs must be covered . Immediately, measures must be taken."

These measures, which were already raised at the meeting with businessmen and the government last Monday, would include moratoriums on layoffs such as those that were established for six months in Italy , or increase severance payments temporarily to discourage these measures, or withdraw the liquidity measures for companies that resort to layoffs and may suspend the employment of their staff. They also propose warning companies that the Temporary Employment Regulation Files (ERTEs) that these days are overflowing the Ministry of Labor will be reviewed to assess whether their appeal to a reason of force majeure has been adjusted to reality.

The prohibition of dismissal is a measure that may have an effect contrary to that intended. According to the unions, 750,000 people are already fired as a result of the economic paralysis caused by the coronavirus. To this figure should be added another above the million for those suspended from employment.

The companies' recourse to the labor measures offered in the health alert plan has grown exponentially since the Government announced it on March 18. However, anticipating the tensions due to the negative prospects for the economy, some experts have already warned that employers may resort to layoffs as a preventive measure , even more so if it is known that the government may introduce moratoriums on these decisions.

Unions indicate that the accelerated job suspension mechanism through ERTEs due to force majeure is being used massively by hundreds of thousands of companies . "They will save hundreds of thousands of jobs but it is necessary to avoid picaresque: the companies that can must complement wages and declare economic causes. It is impossible to control the more than 100,000 files that have already been presented," Álvarez said.

The data of people who are going to join the unemployment lists will be unprecedented, warn the representatives of the workers, who have asked for unemployment benefits to be extended to groups that are outside, such as domestic workers or temporary workers to the that their contract runs out and they do not enter an employment regulation. UGT and CCOO have also advanced that with the current situation and the deadlines that are handled, it is beyond doubt that it can be held on May 1 on the streets on Labor Day.

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