The new COVID-19 mutation has already crippled several foreign economies: the UK is reporting public blackouts and disrupting rail links, and the United States has even shut down education and basic services. In Slovakia, according to the Ministry of Health, only in the first months after the spread of omicron, up to approximately 25,000 hospitalized patients should end up in hospitals. Therefore, Slovak employers took the initiative to prepare internal crisis scenarios. "The companies are testing, the division of employees within the framework of work changes is observed, employees are still motivated to be vaccinated and strict hygienic measures are observed," explains NUE secretary, Martin Hošták. However, he considers low vaccination rates in many regions to be a key risk factor in this regard. According to him, this is a long-term problem, especially in companies in eastern Slovakia. "At the same time, most employers have been facing an acute shortage of employees for a long time, which in combination with a possible massive increase in positivity in work teams can mean a complete interruption of production or closure of the entire company for employers," he warns.
In this context, employers are asking the government to present a comprehensive and effective plan to significantly increase the vaccination rate of the population. They also demand a reduction in the quarantine period if a positive employee is captured. At the same time, they emphasize that regular testing should be paid for by unvaccinated employees over time at their own expense. "Employees have a solution at their disposal from the beginning, which the state provides them with free of charge, and that is vaccination. If they voluntarily decide not to use it, we see no reason why other colleagues should pay it from their taxes and levies," closes the president of NUE, Miroslav Kiraľvarga.
