Speaker of Parliament Andrian Candu pleads for the implementation of the meal voucher system starting with January 1, 2018. In the second round of public debates on the relevant proposal drafted by the Speaker, which were held on June 29, Andrian Candu said the bill can be put up to the vote in Parliament in the second reading, IPN reports.
According to the Speaker, the legislative initiative is to be examined by the Parliament’s commission on social protection, health and family. Work is now done to adjust the recommendations submitted by the representatives of the authorities, state institutions, business community, trade unions and employers. “These are analyzed thoroughly and are included in the concept if a solution is identified,” stated Andrian Candu.
In the debates, Democratic MP Valentina Buliga said some of the provisions of the bill arouse concern. Operators that are to issue meal vouchers complained about the exaggerated bidding conditions. At the given stage, the proposal discriminates against some of the categories of employees, including budget-funded ones and those working in rural areas.
According to Vladislav Kaminski, executive director of the National Employers Confederation, the procedure for leaving the system should be clearly regulated, in case some of the business entities want to give up. In the current form, the legislative initiative discriminates against business entities that run eateries. “Their employees could also want meal vouchers,” stated Kaminski.
Head of the commission on social protection, health and family, Communist MP Oxana Domenti noted that if particular adjustments are not made, employers could substitute salaries with meal vouchers on which taxes are not paid.
Under the proposal, meal vouchers will be given optionally by employers to employees as an employee bonus. Employees will be able to use these at outside canteens, shops and even restaurants, but only for food products. The vouchers are typically in the form of paper tickets, but can be also issued on card. The bill bans the cutting of the salary if meal vouchers are provided and the converting of the voucher into money. The value of the voucher will be set based on the current consumer basket, which is 906 lei a month. The sum is divided into 21.1 working days and a voucher this year will thus be worth 45 lei a day.
