The parliamentary group of Left will test his fellow government MPs again after they did not agree to reduce their travel expenses. The new challenge now will be for the MPs to adopt a law that will reimburse travel expenses for workers. The President of the Left and MP Dimitar Apasiev, announced via Facebook that they will propose amendments to the Labor Relations Law and reimbursement of travel expenses that employers will be obligated to pay to workers in the Parliament.
Apasiev recalled that this labor right was abolished precisely when VMRO-DPMNE was in power, at the proposal of the then Minister of Finance, Trajko Slavevski, who is now the current president of the Skopje City Council.

"Ok. Since you don't want to reduce your travel expenses as MPs, next week the Left will submit a new bill in parliamentary procedure to refund workers' travel expenses (those that were once abolished by the late Trajko Slaveski, when he was Minister of Finance, as an alleged 'legacy of communism')," Apasiev wrote.

According to Levica, if travel expenses can be provided for officials and MPs, then travel expenses can also be provided for workers.
The explanation of the proposed amendments obtained by "Sloboden Pechat" states that the Draft Law is based on the same principles on which the basic text of the Law on Labor Relations is based, and the goal is to equalize the employment rights of workers.

Levica proposes that "if transportation to and from the workplace, as well as meals during work, is not organized by the employer, the employee has the right to:
"a meal allowance in the amount of at least 20 percent of the average net salary per employee paid in the previous year and compensation for transportation costs to and from work over 2 km in the amount of actual public transport costs."

The draft law contains two articles. Article 1 provides for the amendment of Article 113, paragraph (4) of the Basic Law on Labor Relations and the deletion of paragraph (5) of the same article.

Article 2 provides for the usual constitutional deadline for the entry into force of the law, vacatio legis.

Article 113 of The Labor Law states:
The employee has the right to compensation for work-related expenses for:
- business trip
– field allowance
– using a private car for business trips
– separate life from family
– death of the employee or a member of his family.
The employee is entitled to severance pay upon retirement, as well as jubilee awards.
The amount, basis and calculation deadline for payment of compensation for these costs are determined by law and collective agreement.
The employer may, at his own expense, organize transportation to and from the workplace for the workers, as well as meals during work.
The food costs referred to in paragraph 4 of this article may amount to a maximum of 20 percent of the average salary per employee paid in the previous year, and the transportation costs to the amount of actual public transport costs.

The change, in fact, is that the employer "will have to", and not "will be able", as is currently the case in the Law, to organize transportation and meals.
The party says that before proposing the law, it will most likely be amended, meaning that they are reviewing it. the Serbian model, which stipulates that the employer should organize transportation and meals for the workers. In case there is no organized transportation and meals, the employer will have to compensate for this financially, i.e. give the workers money for food and transportation. According to the explanation, this will be part of the law to avoid manipulation of workers' salaries.

According to Levica's explanation, the proposed solution will lead to equal application of the law to all workers and will stimulate increased productivity of workers, who will be relieved of the necessary huge financial expenses they incur in performing their work duties. The law does not foresee budgetary implications and since it is not a complex or extensive amendment to the law, Levica proposes that the Parliament debate the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Labor Relations, in an abbreviated procedure.

Cutting MPs' travel expenses not on the agenda