Criticism of a union representative to the Government: There are no plans to help the most affected group

“Unemployment has risen by more than 9 percent. It has grown significantly over the past year. The pace of job creation has slowed. …

It has been said that we must improve the situation of those who lost their jobs during the pandemic. There was talk of possible changes in unemployment insurance. It is very important to pay attention to the most vulnerable groups: young people, the disabled and the elderly, older workers.

At this point, the president is presenting an initiative that would improve the situation of people with disabilities who have lost their jobs by offering them better social guarantees, ”he said after the meeting.

He also spoke about how job creation can be accelerated. “Here we have financial resources that come from the EU Recovery Fund,” says S. Krėpšta.

He also mentioned the president’s initiative to provide a tax incentive for high-employment employers or fast-growing companies, which would also help speed up the post-quarantine period and improve the situation for workers.

“You need to have tools that work after quarantine. “They would be different from what we have at the moment, but these measures are necessary for the labor market to recover as quickly as possible and improve the well-being of employees,” he says.

Inga Ruginienė, president of the Lithuanian Trade Union Confederation, noted that female workers suffered the most during the pandemic.

“Faced with a pandemic, the figures are cruel for women. Women – one of the groups that suffered the most because reconciling family and work relationships was really very complicated. Unfortunately, when reading the Government’s action plan, I do not see any concrete measures to help affected women.

We see a large percentage of women in the number of layoffs. Who lost the most income: women. These numbers are surprising and terrifying. I think it’s time to catch up and pay attention, “says I. Ruginienė.

He also expressed concern about the work of the Government.

“Today’s current affairs make us talk about one of the most important documents in Lithuania: the European Recovery Plan. We feel a message of anxiety because we have not seen that plan. It has not yet been presented by the Government. To date Today, it is important to see how the European aid will be used in Lithuania, what measures are envisaged and the funds, if the final beneficiary will really be an ordinary citizen, an employee. We do not see this big picture, time is running out. that the government is not prepared for this measure ”, he points out.

According to her, it is very important to pay attention to those employees who were exhausted a little before the required duration of service and ran out of income.

“Our proposal was, at least in an emergency, when quarantine, a difficult situation, measures should be taken so that those who have run out of time do not run out of income, do not go overboard, and at least have a minimum income to survive. “, – teaches I. Ruginienė.

He noted that there was less discussion about the post-quarantine period at this time: “We spoke last spring that a very important transition period, if the quarantine ends today, it does not mean that we will all be standing safely and firmly the next day. . Therefore, it is very important to foresee ongoing measures “.

The union president points out that it is now necessary to provide more serious guarantees to maintain employment than before.

“In the post-quarantine period of the previous stage, the wick or requirement is to maintain 50%. subsidized jobs, if supported, didn’t work. There have been many cases of abuse, there have been group dismissals and that wick has been circumvented with great success, ”he says.

According to the union representative, payment for downtime and support for downtime after quarantine must continue, but for this, jobs must be required to be kept: “Not 50 percent. subsidized jobs, but there should be a clear requirement to opt for group layoffs, as we saw such trends last summer. “

I. Ruginienė has repeatedly said that employee testing is especially important in handling a pandemic. However, according to him, the cost of testing should be borne by the employer himself, since he is primarily responsible for the health of the employees.

“The tests are the direct responsibility of the employer. (…) We hear a lot of claims for reimbursement of testing costs, but employers must take the test, realizing that this is first and foremost important and beneficial to themselves and not expecting state support. (…) This should not be promised or applied to everyone, ”says I. Ruginienė.