Spain: Temporary Financial Aid Scheme, ERTE, to be Extended to September 30

THE Spanish government’s scheme to cover the loss of earnings due to coronavirus is planned to be extended from the end of June to September 30.

However, government proposals on the extension to the scheme known in Spain as ERTE,  has met with resistance from the nation’s trade unions.

The unions are demanding that ERTE is extended until the end of the year, as the best way of helping the nation’s ailing economy.

Businesses across the nation have been hit hard by the pandemic, particularly the tourist sector which contributes around €160 billion to the Spanish economy every year.

Many feel that while obviously of assistance to many during the crisis, the ERTE scheme needs to be extended much further than the end of September for it to be truly beneficial.

In the government’s new draft, it says that companies affected by the pandemic must proceed with getting staff back to work as soon as possible. They have also stated that no overtime or new hiring can be allowed if the worker is covered by the ERTE scheme.