In Georgia, opposition calls on authorities to help people who lost jobs because of coronavirus

At a meeting of the Georgian parliament, MPs voiced a proposal to review the state budget and allocate more than 15 million US dollars to 60,000 families who lost their incomes because of the spread of the coronavirus infection.

In Georgia, the situation with the coronavirus infection affected small- and medium-sized businesses, and many private companies were closed. The tourism sector was particularly affected, together with restaurants, cafes, and bars, which were ordered to operate exclusively through the delivery service.

Today, Roman Gotseridze, the head of the "Unified National Movement" (UNM) Party faction in the Georgian parliament, has come up with an initiative to help families where breadwinners lost their jobs. "The government is to allocate a special anti-crisis voucher for four months, 100 laris per month, to families of the people who lost their jobs," Roman Gotseridze said. According to the MP's calculations, a package of vouchers to 60,000 unemployed families will cost 25 million laris (approximately 7.85 million US dollars).

In turn, the Georgian Trade Unions Confederation (GTUC) called on employers not to violate the rights of employees. "Every citizen who lost his or her job is to have a living allowance equal to the minimum wage. Every employer who abuses the situation will have to answer in court," said Irakli Petriashvili, the chairman of the Georgian Trade Unions Confederation, on the air of "Mtavari Arkhi" TV Channel.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 19, 2020 at 05:21 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.