The Anti-monopoly Office announced that it has imposed an almost €3-million fine for creating two cartels on five companies involved in issuing the so-called meal or restaurant tickets. The mischief consisted in dividing up the market between the companies, and pressuring retail chains to accept a maximum five tickets per shopping, as the issuers receive higher commissions from hotels and restaurants than from shops. At the same time, it has emerged that these companies created a cartel in at least eight tenders. The office states it would be better to scrap the system of mandatory meal tickets handed out as part of people's salaries. "Instead, employees should receive direct financial contributions to their salaries, or the system should at least be made voluntary, with employees deciding for themselves whether they want to receive meal tickets or cash, said office's spokesman Radoslav Tóth.
In reaction, the Labour Ministry stated that if meal tickets were scrapped, people's interest in having meals in restaurants would fall dramatically, affecting employment in this sphere. While meal tickets can only be used for buying food - be it in restaurants or shops - people when receiving cash, would have less incentive to spend the money on food. Furthermore, the Labour Ministry believes that if people receive cash instead of meal tickets - as was the case several years ago - they'll frequently skip lunch, resulting in adverse effects on their health.
