150 companies send staff on furlough after floods
Nearly 150 companies in Luxembourg have applied for government aid to pay employees following floods that saw thousands of homes evacuated and caused extensive damage to businesses stock and machinery.
Companies hit by the July floods may tell staff to stay home for a fixed period of time, during which the government will pay their salaries, Prime Minister Xavier Bettel said after torrential rains on 14 and 15 July - a government scheme known as temporary unemployment, or chômage partiel.
Out of 149 companies who applied for the furlough scheme - which sees the government pay 80% of an employee's wages - 140 received the aid, the economy ministry said on Wednesday. The government separately has set aside €50 million to help affected residents and businesses.
The estimated cost of the damage caused by the floods stands at €120 million, according to the trade association for insurers.
Luxembourg insurers have registered reports of damages to 6,000 homes and 1,000 vehicles in the aftermath of the downpours.
Over the last three years, insurers have paid €230 million for claims generated by natural disasters: disastrous floods in the Ernz Valley in 2018, a 2019 tornado in Pétange and Bascharage and thunderstorms in June 2021.
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