The Association of Women Entrepreneurs sent a letter to Prime Minister Duško Marković in which they propose measures to help micro, small and medium enterprises, as well as independent craft shops.
In the announcement, it is stated that pno are "the most endangered category in Montenegro".
They note that they appreciate the measures introduced by the Government of Montenegro, that is, the National Coordinating Body (NCB) for infectious diseases, and that they act in accordance with them.
In accordance with the applied experiences of countries affected by the coronavirus and business opportunities, they want, as emphasized in the announcement, to contribute to overcoming the crisis period.
"Based on consultations with the Board of Directors of the Association of Entrepreneurs of Montenegro, the membership, and the survey conducted last week, we propose the following measures as the most urgent:
1) Certain financial support for companies depending on their size, number of employees, and way of doing business.
2) Subsidies for employees' wages during the epidemic (example of Denmark: the state subsidizes three quarters of the monthly salary of employees in the private sector while employers undertake not to fire employees due to business losses caused by the coronavirus pandemic); Luxembourg will spend 500 million euros per month to finance 15.000 companies and 100.000 employees and cover 80% of the wages of those affected; The Netherlands also pays up to 90% of workers' wages in a bid to prevent massive job losses; UK government Will pay 80% of wages for employer-retained staff covering wages up to £2.500 per month.
3) Write off VAT payment obligations by 50% while this situation lasts, and after that, settle the rest of the debt by paying in installments over the next 12 months; 4) Postponement of all other taxes (corporate income tax, property tax and others taxes due legally by April 30...)
5) Prohibition of forced collection of claims while the epidemic situation lasts.
6) Postponing the payment of overhead costs and other fees, which would burden companies additionally while the epidemic lasts.
7) Activate the state subsidy program for short-term employment and thus not allow the dismissal of workers with a fixed-term contract that expires during the epidemic period; or activate the government Regulation on subsidizing employers (parts of taxes, contributions that are borne by the lender as well as the tax surcharge at the Local Revenue Administration), similar to the regulation on subsidies for the employment of certain categories of unemployed persons from 2018, but that it applies to all persons no difference," the announcement of the Association of Entrepreneurs of Montenegro states.
It is added that the proposed measures will allow them to be on the verge of survival and that the companies would not shut down.
"Otherwise, the majority will be forced to close their companies and shut down their operations (out of 100 female entrepreneurs surveyed, 72% answered that if nothing is done, they will be forced to shut down their company), after several years of work, thus unwillingly generating an additional number of unemployed. 5.350 commercial establishments in Podgorica are working, 10%. Out of 1.300 craft establishments in Podgorica, not a single company is working. Not even 1.600 catering establishments are working, without citing figures from other cities in Montenegro where we have our membership. We hope that these solve the problems together and that the Government, with you at the helm, will respect the proposed measures, because we designed them keeping in mind not only the stability of our companies, but also the entire socio-economic system of our country", concludes the statement of the Association of Entrepreneurs of Montenegro.
They submitted the letter to: the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, the Ministry of Human and Minority Rights, the Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber of Crafts, the Union of Employers, the Investment and Development Fund of Montenegro (IRFCG), the Employment Agency of Montenegro (ZZZCG). , the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the UNDP Office in Montenegro, the Organization for European Security and Cooperation (OSCE) and the Capital City.
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