The National Interest Reconciliation Council (OÉT) discussed the government’s new “Way to Work” social benefits programme yesterday. The government has studied the possibility of launching a “social account”, to which benefits would be paid and from which account holders could pay their public duties, Labour and Social Minister Erika Szűcs said at the meeting introducing the programme, which was distributed among OÉT members the previous night.
Employers insist that the minimum wage should be higher than social benefits, in order to encourage individuals to enter employment, but cannot support a raise in the minimum wage. Entrepreneurs and Employers National Association head Ferenc Dávid suggested giving social benefits in kind for the “physically and mentally drained.”
Unions are focused on giving priority to jobs and not dismissing social benefits, because many people are not personally responsible for not being able to find a job, Liga union alliance co-chairman Péter Kónya said. Of those who did not complete eight years of primary school, only 10% have jobs, while this figure is only 2% for females, Kónya noted.