By: Moja Dolenjska
The Prime Minister’s announcement that the Christmas bonus will be mandatory for everyone is merely a pre-election sweetener. If the Prime Minister truly wanted to help employees, he would ease the burden of wage costs in Slovenia and, at the beginning of his term, would have allowed the already adopted gradual increase of the general tax allowance to proceed, something that would have enabled higher net salaries for all employees in the country.
Citizens would have significantly more in their pockets today than the proposed Christmas bonus.
The Chamber of Craft and Small Business of Slovenia (OZS) emphasises that craftsmen and entrepreneurs support the idea of a Christmas bonus, but only if it is voluntary and tax-exempt.
At yesterday’s session of the executive board, members strongly condemned the Prime Minister’s announcement of a mandatory Christmas bonus, made without prior agreement with social partners. They resolved that if the bonus becomes mandatory, OZS will withdraw from the Economic and Social Council, and they do not rule out the possibility of civil disobedience.
OZS argues that Golob could help employees by easing wage burdens, not by introducing a mandatory bonus. In their view, this move also incites employees against their employers.
They point out that bonuses are already given by those who can afford them, but due to excessive tax burdens, businesses are becoming increasingly uncompetitive. They add that many companies will suffer losses because of the mandatory bonus, and some may even go bankrupt, this, they say, is a fact. They support the Christmas bonus, but it should be voluntary and tax-free. “Entrepreneurs should give it to those employees who contribute to the company’s success, not indiscriminately to everyone,” they warn.
Golob’s announcement was described as “merely a pre-election manoeuvre.” Because someone wants to stay in power for another four years, they are willing to sacrifice an entire generation of entrepreneurs. In the end, all these bonuses will be paid by citizens through higher prices for food, services, and childcare.
They warn that the Prime Minister is offering voters sweeteners, but not from his own pocket. People do not realise that he could have simply allowed the general tax allowance, already adopted by the previous government, to take effect, which would have brought higher net income to all employees in Slovenia every year.
