More than 12,000 employers, with about 60,000 workers, have applied so far for the government's job-retention measures presented in October, and their number is expected to grow, Labour Minister Josip Aladrovic said on Wednesday, adding that sufficient funds have been secured for the measures.

These figures refer to subsidies for October, for which applications can be submitted until November 25.

“The government will help employers and employees until the end of the year, and probably even beyond that, so that we can save jobs,” Aladrovic said.

“We are quite convinced that we will have certain measures to keep jobs next year as well,” he added.

The minister said that the measures adopted by the government in March saved the labour market, and he expects this will continue to be the case in the future.

Asked how long can Croatia withstand this rate of infection in economic terms, he said that it could certainly withstand it until the end of this year and the beginning of next year.

Asked whether new measures are being considered, he said that analyses had shown that the measures are good and there was no need for new ones for now, but that could also be considered if necessary.

In October, the government released a new package of measures to support the economy due to the problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Some of the measures increased the possibility of reducing working hours by 50 to 70%. The maximum monthly subsidy per worker was increased from HRK 2,000 to HRK 2,800, and the documentation necessary to receive subsidies were streamlined.

Another novelty meant that subsidies are graded according to the employers’ drop in revenue, so employers with a drop of 40% are eligible for a HRK 2,000 subsidy per employee, while those with a drop in revenue of 60% and more are eligible for a HRK 4,000 per employee. In addition, employers are exempt from paying contributions related to those subsidies.