LJUBLJANA (Slovenia), March 23 (SeeNews) – Slovenia's government said it adopted a draft bill to keep the country's market closed to Croatian employees for a further two years, until June 30, 2020.
The bill, amending the already extended act on the transitional period of free movement of citizens of Croatia and their family members, is aimed to ensure that the employment of Croats will depend on the conditions on the Slovenian labour market, the government said in a statement on Thursday.
The legislation will consequently ensure "the continued stable operation of the Slovenian labour market in the coming two years", the government noted.
Earlier this month, the UK announced Croatian citizens will have the same rights on the UK labour market as the citizens of the other EU member states from July 1. The restrictions have been in force since 2013, on the basis of the EU accession treaty signed by Croatia. Slovenia, Austria and the Netherlands are the only EU countries with restrictions still in place for Croatian workers.
According to the EU's free movement treaty, EU citizens are entitled to look for a job in another EU country, work there without needing a work permit, reside there for that purpose, stay there even after employment has finished and enjoy equal treatment with nationals in access to employment, working conditions and all other social and tax advantages.