corona prague Archives – Page 3 of 4

The Czech Republic reported just 52 more cases of the coronavirus on Sunday, the smallest daily increase since March 14.

The country had 7,404 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection by Monday morning. So far 2,555 people have recovered and 221 people have died, only one more in the last 24 hours.

From Monday, April 27, shops of up the 2,500 m² will be allowed to reopen if they’re not located in large shopping centers, as well as gym and fitness centers, outdoor zoos and gardens, driving schools, libraries and church services of up to 15 people.

Foreign Minister Tomáš Petříček (CSSD) during an interview to CT on Sunday evening believes that “from July, Czech tourists could visit Slovakia or Austria, or even earlier in case of favorable developments.”

“Regarding Italy, France, or the United States, it is premature to talk about traveling to these countries,” he added.

5,508 (out of the planned 27,000) people have been tested for the coronavirus antibodies to gain information on how many came into contact with the infection.

Seven percent of Czechs who were active in terms of work before the coronavirus pandemic have lost their jobs, according to the latest survey “Life during a pandemic” conducted by PAQ Research and IDEA AntiCovid initiative.

Job losses have now occurred for 24 percent of the self-employed individuals and 3 percent of employees.

More than a third of employees said that their employment contract or work activities were adjusted for reduced hours (11 percent), reduced wages (8 percent) and benefits (8 percent). Others have been forced to take care of their children (6 percent), experienced forced leave (9 percent), and had a loss of income from an employment contract (4 percent).

The decline in the number of hours worked has stabilized compared to the end of March. About 30 to 35 percent of people working before the epidemic claims they now work up to 20 hours a week, and about 50 to 55 percent have maintained their full-time working hours of 40 hours a week or more.

Roughly a quarter of respondents who were active in terms of work before the epidemic have a relatively strong fear of losing their job.

More than 40 percent of people whose working conditions have changed, as well as about a third of people with lower qualifications and those who were poor before the epidemic, are also fearful of this outcome.

The number of those partially affected by the decline in household income has increased slightly since the end of March.

About 36 percent of households participating in the survey have savings that would be enough for a maximum of one month if they did not have any other income.

Roughly seven percent of people belong to a high-risk category, in which households have lost at least half of income and have savings for only one month. This group greatly consists of the self-employed, single parents and people whose working hours have changed.

The survey shows that 14 percent of households are still considering some radical solutions, such as loans, a sale of a property, and the search for cheaper housing. This applies to about a quarter of respondents from the group identified as vulnerable.

Thanks to the mortgage and rent payments deferment, the situation for households has improved, however, there are still some households that already had problems repaying long-term financial liabilities even before the crisis.

Škoda Auto has announced it will be resuming production at its Czech plants on 27 April while maintaining protective measures to prevent employees from becoming infected by the coronavirus.

The car manufacturer has approved a set of comprehensive measures for all areas of the business.

More than 80 individual precautions, defined together with the social partner KOVO Union, include both specific steps to keep the workforce healthy and organizational provisions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace.

Production at the three Czech sites has been suspended since 18 March 2020.

The list of precautions defined by Skoda includes, for example, that all employees put on a face mask when entering the factory premises. This is also applicable to external staff. Škoda Auto will provide all colleagues with the masks required, which will have to be worn at all times whilst at work.

Each shift has been allocated with additional time to clean tools, telephones, and keyboards as well as any materials and surfaces. Furthermore, all areas will be cleaned and disinfected even more frequently.

Škoda Auto has also made some changes to daily operations in order to protect the workforce. These include adapting the way staff shuttles operate, and altering procedures at factory gates, reception points and in the canteens, as well as how working hours are recorded.

Other provisions have been made for staff in production to work in smaller, fixed teams. Briefings at shift changeover are to be as short as possible, and more break time areas have been made available in order to keep personal contact and the risk of infection to a minimum.

The precautions to be taken after production resumes are set in three stages. Until further notice, stage 1 will see all of the measures apply in full.

In stage 2, certain provisions will then be lifted. Stage 3 will allow for further, gradual easing of the measures over a prolonged period of time, ensuring this is done responsibly and in a manner that keeps people safe.

At an appropriate time, the end of this third phase will enable normal daily operations to resume, meaning any currently applicable restrictions on entering the factory premises, e.g. for visitors, will be lifted.

General liability insurance is a type of insurance policy that can help businesses should they run into problems. Such problems can come with a high cost, but general liability insurance can help cover such costs. Read more about the importance of insurance especially, specifically for car rental companies.

From March 19th in the entire Czech Republic has been mandatory to wear face/surgical masks (or at least scarves or bandannas) fully covering the nose and mouth when going out in public.

During today’s press conference, Deputy Health Minister Roman Prymula announced that coronavirus countermeasures, such as wearing face masks, the use of disinfectants, and social distancing will be in place at least until the end of June.

According to the government’s regulations, police officers can impose an on-the-spot fine of CZK 10,000 to anyone found not wearing the correct equipment in public.

The Czech Republic had 7,236 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection by the end of Friday. So far 2,371 people have recovered and 214 people have died.

On Thursday, April 23, the Czech cabinet lifted a ban on its citizens traveling abroad for reasons other than work following an improvement in conditions of the coronavirus outbreak.

Czech citizens and foreigners with permission to enter the country have two options for arrival in the Czech Republic from the midnight on Friday 24 April, 2020: present a negative coronavirus test upon return or be subject to two-week quarantine.

Later today, PM Babiš stated that “we had theoretically opened the borders, but in practice, people cannot get anywhere. Flights are mostly canceled and other governments won’t allow people from other countries to enter unless they have a valid coronavirus test. The lifted ban on travel abroad mainly applies to business trips.”

According to Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, the possibility of traveling outside the Czech border is “only theoretical”. He announced it during an interview with iRozhlas on Friday morning.

In his opinion, “the Czech Republic managed the epidemic very well and is one of the ‘world leaders’ in this fight.”

“We had theoretically opened the borders, but in practice, people cannot get anywhere. Flights are mostly canceled and other governments won’t allow people from other countries to enter unless they have a valid coronavirus test. The lifted ban on travel abroad mainly applies to business trips,” added the Prime Minister.

However, travel conditions are regularly negotiated with neighboring countries. Babiš took part in video conferences with presidents and prime ministers from Austria, Denmark, Norway, Australia, and Greece, which are successfully managing the epidemic.

There is criticism that the announcement sowed confusion, with no immediate information on when foreign visitors would be allowed to re-enter, which would help Prague’s beleaguered tourism industry.

“Has the government opened the borders only for Czech citizens or for foreigners who would like to come to the Czech Republic?” tweeted Jiří Pehe, a political analyst and director of New York University in Prague.

According to the Prime Minister, “the mass tourism is still unrealistic, although now we allow citizens from traveling across borders. “But I recommend people to stay in the Czech Republic. It is safe here, we manage the epidemic very well compared to other countries,” says Babiš.

“Now we need to open shops, restaurants, and other businesses,” he concludes.

On Thursday evening, the Czech cabinet lifted a ban on its citizens traveling abroad for reasons other than work following an improvement in conditions of the coronavirus outbreak.

“It is possible to travel abroad, even for a holiday. But when one returns, they have to be COVID-negative, with proof by a test, or go into a two-week quarantine,” Vojtech said at a televised news conference.

Restrictions are also being lifted on movement within the country, with groups of up to 10 people permitted to gather. Previous rules limited outdoor gatherings to two.

The real estate market in the capital continues to be characterized by an increasing supply of apartments for rent.

While in February of this year, around 50 new ads were appearing daily on the server Bezrealitky, in March it was 84 and so far in April, it has been 75. It still stands that the apartments going on the market had originally been intended for short-term leases – on Bezrealitky, specifically, it’s 20 to 25 a day.

Initial prognoses, however, expected April numbers to be significantly stronger.

“At the end that didn’t turn out to be true, mostly due to the impact of the Easter holidays, but also the announcement of gradual easing of restrictions. More and more apartments, originally intended for short-term leases, also end up in the offer column in second-hand systems which don’t monitor the quality of ads in any way,” says the CEO of Bezrealitky, Hendrik Meyer.

He says that this path is often used for offering leases without a contract and lasting for example only one month when the owners haven’t yet given up on the prospect of a strong season.

However, the easing of government restrictions won’t culminate until May 25^,and a more robust return of tourists is still nowhere in sight. For example, the Hotel and Restaurant Association of the Czech Republic estimates that tourism won’t restart before autumn, and not in mass numbers by far.

Apartments originally intended as Airbnb rentals also continue to enter the supply.

This is not the only indicator of the fact that Prague’s apartment rental market will continue to have a lot to offer – after all, on March 26 the aggregate service Sreality listed roughly 6,200 apartments for rent while these days it’s nearly 7,900. The several months’ old situation which was characterized by a brutal excess of demand is thus starting to turn around.

“In the segment of residential leases, the demand in March was at 62 % in comparison to last year,” says David Šimečka, who leads the department of residential leases at the real estate agency Svoboda & Williams.

As of now, April demand numbers are comparable to last year’s, but the increase in interest focuses primarily on cheaper real estate. “Our driving force is the decreased rent prices, in particular,” Šimečka added.

Despite the fact that rent prices decreased by tens of percent in certain areas, some people expect that living in the capital will be more expensive in relation to earnings and they are leaving the city.

This is how Hendrik Meyer interprets the trends he has been observing on Bezrealitky – the increase in apartments and houses sold in the Central Bohemian region for the second month in a row, despite an overall decrease in the country. “These are primarily Prague citizens, moving due to the impact of the current situation,” Meyer says.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning that sales of new apartments in Prague dropped by nearly a half, which can be seen in March data published by the server CenovaMapa.org. It can be surmised that due to the state of emergency, up to 225 fewer new apartments were sold, which in the context of real estate developer revenues means a drop by nearly 1,6 billion CZK.

The Czech Republic will move forward plans to ease its coronavirus lockdown by two weeks to get most businesses and restaurants operating again by May 25.

Industry Minister Karel Havlicek said on Thursday the slowing of new infections since the Easter holiday weekend this month had been good enough for the government to move faster.

“We evaluated Easter, the results are very promising,” Havlicek told a televised news briefing. “There will be 14-day intervals (in the re-opening), at the moment (the schedule) roughly copies what is done in Germany or Austria.”

From Monday, the government will allow shops with floor space of up to 2,500 square metres to re-open, along with fitness centres, libraries, small church services and outdoor zoo exhibits.

“Establishments up to 2,500 m2 and with their own entrance can reopen from Monday, April 27, as well as driving schools, gyms and fitness centers, libraries, zoos and botanical gardens without indoor pavilions,” said Havlíček.

Shopping centres, larger shops, hair and beauty salons, restaurants and cafes with a dispensing window, barbershop, massages, galleries, and exteriors areas of castles and chateaux are slated to open again from May 11 under the adjusted plan, which then sees restaurants, hotels, theatres and most other services open by May 25.

The government did not announce any plans to lift compulsory wearing of face masks in public and said it would decide on allowing public gatherings later.

On Thursday, the cabinet was scheduled to hold an extraordinary meeting to extend the state of emergency, but it was suspended due to a Prague court decision that canceled some measures by the Ministry of Health.

These are mainly related to the closure of shops and restriction of movement.

April 27
– Stores up to 2,500 square meters (except those in shopping centers)
– Driving schools
– Gyms and fitness centres but the showers and dressing rooms within them will be off-limits.

May 11
– Restaurants, bars, and cafes, with service from windows or in gardens.
– Hairdressers
– Beauty salons
– Tanning salons
– Museums, galleries, exhibition halls
– Zoological gardens (outdoor parts only)

May 25
– Shopping center
– Restaurants, cafes, and bars
– Hotels, hostels, (including their restaurants)
– Theaters
– Castles and palaces
– Bookstores
– Cinemas and theaters
– It will be possible to hold events for up to 50 people
– Tattoo and piercing salons

A Prague court has canceled some restrictive measures approved by the Czech government to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

Prague’s Municipal Court has ruled that the government’s restrictions limiting movement and shutting down retail businesses are illegal. Thursday’s verdict is final.

The court ruled after a complaint by medical expert Ondrej Dostal, who questioned the legality of those measures.

The restrictions were imposed by the Health Ministry. The court said the government should have approved the restrictions as part of its crisis measures under the state of emergency rules.

It said a single ministry cannot have such right.

Health Minister Adam Vojtěch said the government will try to comply with the ruling while maintaining restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the new coronavirus.

The government has until Monday to adopt the measures again and in line with law.

Václav Havel Prague Airport remains open for all arrivals and departures. Thanks to this fact, a total of 44 special cargo flights with medical supplies were able to land there since 20 March 2020 when the first aircraft with medical supplies on board landed in Prague.

More than 1,200 tons of medical aid in total has already reached the Czech Republic. The total volume of cargo handled at Prague Airport, including regular cargo routes, has increased by 26.5% year-on-year during this period.

Since 18 March 2020, Prague Airport has also handled a total of 33 arrivals and departures of repatriation flights with passengers on board. More than 3,600 passengers, mostly Czech citizens returning home to their families and loved ones from abroad, have arrived in the Czech Republic aboard those flights.

Moreover, approximately 900 foreign nationals have been able to travel back home from the Czech Republic this way.

“Since the second half of March, important medical supplies have been brought to the Czech Republic via Václav Havel Airport Prague almost daily, confirming the strategic importance of our airport within the transport infrastructure of the country. The flights with medical supplies on board are primarily handled by employees of Prague Airport and its subsidiaries, alongside other handling companies and additional partner organizations, such as the Czech Fire Rescue Service, the Czech Police, the Army of the Czech Republic and the Administration of the State Material Reserves,” Vaclav Rehor, Chairman of the Prague Airport Board of Directors, said.

For several months, due to the spread of COVID-19, stringent sanitary measures have been applied to both passengers and airport staff who continue to perform their irreplaceable roles in the airport with limited traffic.

The measures have gradually been introduced since the end of January. For example, in places where queues usually form, stickers are placed advising people to keep a safe distance. Check-in counters and information desks continue to use protective screens, which form an effective barrier between the passenger and the employee.

Every passenger on arrival receives a face mask if they are lacking one, together with an information leaflet on mandatory procedures upon arrival from abroad to the Czech Republic. The arrival gates and other passenger check-in areas are regularly disinfected thoroughly.

“Prague Airport has managed to secure a sufficient amount of protective gear and disinfectant on time. Thus, every employee has access to respirators, face masks, gloves and other protective equipment. There are also more than 250 hand sanitizers located throughout the airport. Employees are consistently and regularly trained in the prevention, as well as their family members, for whom we have created and distributed family-friendly leaflets on the prevention of the spread of COVID-19,” Vaclav Rehor stated.

However, regular traffic at Václav Havel Airport Prague continues to decline. Last March, the airport handled approximately 6,015 arrivals and departures, which is a year-on-year decrease of 47.3%.

Prague Mayor Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) is under police protection. The exact reason for this measure was not given by the municipality.

The Mayor’s spokesperson Martina Vacková informed the Czech media this afternoon. In the second half of March, police detained a man who threatened Hřib because of anti-coronavirus measures.

“The reasons and specific protection methods cannot be commented, following the decision of the police. For security reasons, the Mayor is currently unable to use public transport,” said Vacková.

Hřib recently filed a criminal complaint against an unknown offender. “Someone was following and watching outside his house,” added Vacková. It is not clear whether the current police protection and the case are related.

Hřib is married and has three children.

On March 19, Prague police detained a man who had threatened the Mayor over the phone due to the measures in place to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The man was charged with extortion.

Zdeněk Hřib is a member of the Czech Pirate party and was inaugurated as mayor of Prague in November 2018.

Born in a family of architects on 21 May 1981, he decides to go for a medical career, and after completing his studies at the Medical Faculty in Prague, devotes himself to scientific research on the quality and efficiency of public services.

He is the author of a number of articles in both domestic and foreign media.

He is a member of several working groups on IT and quality of service at ministerial level, the World Health Organization, and the European Union. He is also a Director of the Society of Applied Research, Education, and Management in Health and occasionally lectures students inside and outside the faculty.

The Czech government banned Czech citizens from traveling abroad when declaring a state of emergency on March 16, but in an attempt to stimulate domestic demand, the government is looking to financially support Czechs who want to travel within their own country.

Travel restrictions were partially eased a month later on April 14 after the government drafted a list of exceptions for those who wish to travel abroad.

Since then, people traveling due to family or business reasons are allowed to leave the Czech Republic. If they stay abroad for more than 24 hours, they must undergo a two-week quarantine after returning to Czechia.

Such a blanket measure banning Czechs from traveling abroad is unique compared to other countries worldwide.

While most states limit the entry of foreigners into their territories, most have not explicitly restricted citizens from traveling abroad.

In addition to the Czech Republic, Belgium is an exception in Europe, forbidding its citizens to travel outside the country in all “non-essential” cases, writes the New York Times.

Czech law experts see no support for the travel ban

Experts point out that Czech law allows the borders to be closed to those who wish to enter the country, it does not allow the country to restrict citizens who wish to travel abroad.

Therefore, some Czech lawyers believe that the ban on traveling outside the country is unconstitutional, even during the state of emergency.

The Czech conception of a state of emergency makes it possible to limit citizens’ movement in a defined area.

However, as constitutional law expert Jan Wintr stated for Hospodářské noviny, the whole world cannot be considered a defined area. The right to leave the Czech Republic is guaranteed by the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms, which also applies during a state of emergency.

Nevertheless, the Czech government continues to defend the travel ban.

“A blanket travel ban is an extreme measure that was necessary and has proven to work. Therefore, we cannot open the borders at present,” said Interior Minister Jan Hamáček.

President Miloš Zeman also supports the ban. He said on Sunday that the border should be closed for one year to prevent another wave of the coronavirus epidemic from hitting the country.

Czech government’s attitude towards tourism

At the same time, the government is working to support the travel of Czechs within the country, with Zeman even recommending people enjoy the beauty of the Czech landscape

The Czech government is also exploring ways to support the country’s hard-hit tourist industry, with the Ministry of Regional Development developing a plan to keep domestic tourism alive.

Beginning in May, the ministry wants to start offering companies a contribution to holiday vouchers with which employees could travel around the Czech Republic.

“We are preparing a vacation in the Czech Republic program. It is a motivational system that will allow companies to offer employees vacation gift vouchers for their vacation in our country,” Regional Development Minister Klára Dostálová said.

The system is based on recreational vouchers worth 10,000 CZK.

Companies that would offer these vouchers to employees could then deduct the costs from taxes.

In the Czech Republic, the tourism industry is one of the main economic sectors, but it heavily relies on foreign tourists, which nationwide make up just under half of all tourists per year.

Given the reality of closed borders, the tourism industry will depend entirely on domestic visitors in the coming months and possibly years.

Since the beginning of April, Czechs are spending on average CZK 360,000 on beer and food vouchers every day to be consumed “in better times”.

Following the success of Zachraň pivo! (Save the Beer!) website, the new Zachraň svou hospodu! (Save Your Pub!) site enables concerned drinkers to buy vouchers for use when cash-strapped Czech pubs re-open.

The initiative partners include a dozen of the Czech Republic’s biggest breweries, alcohol, and soft drinks producers. Among them is Plzeňský Prazdroj, the makers of Pilsner Urquell.

“The brewers who work in the pubs all their lives are inherently connected with the pub. We need to support each other,” says Plzeňský Prazdroj’s chief brewmaster emeritus Václav Berka, who has personally bought several vouchers.

Berka called on his colleagues in the industry to support their pubs as well. “I was pleasantly surprised by the interest in this initiative, but on the other hand, I was surprised at how many pubs are not involved, yet. I don’t want to use any strong words, but beer is our destiny. Our lives have been associated with it for decades.”

“More than 90 percent of establishments are now closed. Czech pubs are part of our culture, an important part of communities. They are in fact a social network,” said Budvar’s brewmaster, Aleš Dvořák.

The “Save your pub!” project was launched by the Czech Association of Breweries and Malthouses, and so far about 2,500 pubs have registered, more than an eighth of the total establishments in the country.

The Save the Pub! website lets customers select establishments by region, district or neighborhood. As of Tuesday morning, almost 4,000 people had bought vouchers through the system – for anywhere from 100 crowns (good for two, maybe three pints) to 1,000 crowns (enough to have a proper night out for two).

Martina Ferencová, head of the Czech Beer and Malt Association, considers the Save Your Pub! the initiative really successful.

“Customers already spent 7 million CZK on vouchers. It’s a big success considering we started this project at the beginning of April,” she says to iRozhlas.

Approximately 50,000 pubs in the Czech Republic were forced to close as a result of government measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus epidemic.

Czech law experts see no support for the travel ban

Czech government’s attitude towards tourism

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