MADRID – ERTE, (the job retention scheme) has officially been extended until October 31 following an agreement by the Government, trade unions, and employers. However, negotiations are still ongoing for a possible further extension until the end of January 2022.
An agreement in principle was reached today to extend ERTE until the end of October 2021. The current agreement was due to finish at the end of this month. This latest one-month extension will follow the same conditions as previously.
Conditions attached
It has not yet been confirmed or decided what the requirements will be for an extension beyond this point. However, companies requiring an extension after the end of October will have to apply for this between October 1-10. The features of this have yet to be negotiated. But it is thought there will be conditions attached.
Application to be extended
With this new application, companies will be under scrutiny. As previously reported, nearly 5,500 cases of fraud were uncovered. These amounted to nearly €26 million in fines up until the beginning of June 2021.
With the increase in the vaccination rate in Spain, the lowering of restrictive measures, and the recent increase in tourism, there had been a decrease in the number of companies claiming ERTE for their staff.
The ERTE scheme was first implemented at the start of the pandemic to help offset the economic effects of Covid-19 restrictions.
