The measure is aimed at increasing the employability of young people without work experience through professional training without formally entering into employment for a period of one year and with a monthly salary of 1,600 kuna.
"We believe that this will give young people aged up to 29 years to gain a year's work experience which is a requirement for getting a job," Labour and Pension Minister Mirando Mrsic said. "We have also been contacted by people aged from 35 to 39 who have a university degree but not a single day of work experience, so we will include them as well," he added.
He said that the measure was not aimed at employers but at job-seekers who would decide by themselves whether they would accept it or not. Employers face penalties if they attempt to abuse this measure.
The government is also trying to make it easier for employers to hire workers by further reducing the cost of labour, Mrsic said. Employers will thus be exempt for two years from paying 15.4% wage contributions for hiring unemployed people without work experience or people who have been registered with the unemployment office for more than two years.