Havana , Cuba ( CNN ) -- The Cuban government has agreed to allow all private businesses to hire employees , ­ something previously restricted to a limited number of occupations , state media said Tuesday . A meeting of the Council of Ministers also approved a proposal to delay massive layoffs , Granma newspaper reported , without providing any details . Last year , President Raul Castro announced the biggest shakeup to the Soviet-style economic model in decades . He said more than a million state jobs needed to be eliminated . At the same time , he said more private enterprise would be allowed to help soak up some of the unemployed and provide new sources of income , via taxes , for depleted state coffers . The government published a list of 178 private occupations that Cubans could hold , from running a private restaurant to working as a plumber to being a party clown . Of those , 83 of them could hire employees . Now , the Council of Ministers has granted all small businesses the authority to hire employees and agreed to further loosen regulations on the self-employed , according to Granma . The newspaper said it would provide details at a later date . More than 200,000 Cubans have bought licenses to open small businesses since October . The plan for government layoffs was harshly criticized by Cubans worried that for the first time in 50 years they will no longer be guaranteed a job , no matter how small the salary . Castro originally had said that half of the layoffs from state jobs would come by March of this year . He later announced that the layoffs would be delayed , without giving a new timetable .
All private businesses are allowed to hire employees , the Council of State says . Funding will be available at a later date , Granma newspaper reports . More than 500 people have bought licenses to open small businesses since October .