On Tuesday, the Regional Secretariat for Employment and Social Solidarity rejected the thesis, put forth by a union leader, that the Professional Valorisation Programme (PVP), established by the Regional Government of the Azores, contravenes the legal requisites of the Employment Code.

The Secretariat assures that “there is not a substantial or minor alteration in the legal rules of the Employment Code that are applicable to the suspension of an employment contract for vocational training purposes.”

Therefore, the allegation that “there are unconstitutionalities in the implementation of the programme is a complete distortion of the meaning of the legal dispositions of the Employment Code, in which the PVP programme is based.”

The Government launched the Professional Valorisation Programme with the objective of promoting vocational training in the tourism sector (accommodation, restaurants and leisure services) in seasonal periods of low tourist demand.

The PVP grants public support to the payment of salaries of workers involved in the vocational training initiatives in the aforementioned circumstances.