MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Friday, May 2, 2025 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Thursday, May 1): BRATISLAVA - We are currently witnessing global changes of a scale not seen in decades, making our membership in the European Union (EU) more meaningful, valuable, and forward-looking than ever, said President Peter Pellegrini on the occasion of the 21st anniversary of Slovakia joining the EU, while also noting that some of the Union's economic and environmental initiatives have proved overly ambitious. "We're living in times when the rules that took decades to establish are changing overnight in the global order. The law of the strongest is re-emerging, and international law is being pushed into the background. In these difficult times, small countries such as Slovakia, which are economically and in terms of security vulnerable, must rely on their partners and allies. Without them, we would be left at the mercy of those who recognise no rules," the president noted, adding that from this perspective, Slovakia's EU membership is of enormous importance. Pellegrini stated that the EU also has its shortcomings. "We can certainly criticise the Union for many things. From excessive bureaucracy that unnecessarily deals with issues that don't require attention, to several major economic and environmental initiatives that have proven overly ambitious and, without cooperation from the rest of the world, nearly impossible to fulfil," the head of state added. HUMENNE - The energy supply issue at the industrial park in Humenne (Presov region), which threatened the loss of hundreds of jobs at local companies, has been resolved following the signing of a contract for the rental of heating equipment between Chemes Industrial Park and MH Teplarensky Holding, a company under the Economy Ministry, TASR learnt from Economy Minister Denisa Sakova (Voice-SD) on Thursday. According to the minister, the energy facilities will start operating on Thursday, supplying both regulated and unregulated energy to the industrial park. "This means that the residents of Humenne can rest assured that they will have heating during the winter season and hot water throughout the year, and at the same time, the 1,500 people working at Chemes Industrial Park in Humenne will not lose their jobs," she added. The agreement was also confirmed and praised by Labour Minister Erik Tomas (Voice-SD), Mayor of Humenne Milos Mericko, and representatives of the industrial park and Nexis Fibers. PRESOV - The Labour Ministry will launch a new employment support programme called 'Right to First Employment 2', Labour Minister Erik Tomas stated at a Voice-SD briefing in Precov on Thursday. According to the minister, this is a continuation of the successful pilot project 'Right to First Employment' launched last year, which created 1,830 jobs, mainly for young people. "This time, the project will no longer be funded from state funds, but from EU funds – with no limits on the amount of money or the number of jobs," he said. The condition will once again be that the person must be registered as unemployed for at least one month, or three months for university graduates. "If such a person also meets the second condition, namely that they have not worked continuously in Slovakia for more than six months, they can be employed through this project," he said. Additionally, the project will cover the cost of a mentor for three months, who will train the new employee in their role. "So, for nine months, we will cover 80 percent of the total cost of labour, and we expect a six-month sustainability period," Tomas added. BRATISLAVA - Labour Day, celebrated on May 1, is an "extremely important and significant" national holiday, stated Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) in a speech shared on social media from the Government Office in Bratislava. "I must acknowledge that in our country, there are people who don't appreciate work and who would gladly overshadow Labour Day with other events, wanting to give it a different meaning. However, for me, as a left-wing oriented politician, May 1 will always be primarily associated with Labour Day," said the premier. He particularly thanked everyone who is required to work even during public holidays. Fico also symbolically congratulated the workers currently engaged in reconstruction work at the Government Office. lin