Lithuanian businessman in Denmark’s million dollar lawsuit raises awkward questions

The situation has caught the attention of Danish politicians and has sparked a heated debate about the so-called “Danish model”, where the state has almost no interference in industrial relations.

The police were just watching

R. Daujotas told Delfi that the conflict that took place in December 2019 was the culmination of the conflict between D. Aleksandravičius and his Danish company DS Byggeri (Danish Construction) with the Danish Scaffolding Club.

“In 2018, just after starting to operate in the scaffolding market in Denmark, D. Aleksandravičius immediately received threats and demands to terminate his activities, as it is alleged that only Danish companies with high service price agreements can operate in the scaffolding market.

D. Aleksandravičius began to provide cheaper and better services than the companies provided by the Danish Scaffolding Club member, so the Danish Scaffolding Club was outraged and constantly demanded that the Lithuanian businessman suspend his activities. He was threatened that if D. Aleksandravičius did not leave the beauty, his business would be attacked and destroyed, he himself was constantly threatened with death, his house was shot.

When D. Aleksandravičius did not agree to cease his activities, the Scaffolding Club organized the members of his unions (several dozen and several hundred each) to go to the works of D. Aleksandravičius and block his activities (dismantle the scaffolding, attack and insulting employees, sending threats to customers, suppliers and employees of D. Aleksandravičius)., making various complaints to the Danish authorities about job security, wages, etc.), ”said a representative of the Motieka ir Audzevičius law firm.

R. Daujotas said that even after these actions, D. Aleksandravičius ordered the construction site and continued working.

“In December 2019, the Scaffolding Club (publicly) started organizing an even bigger protest, summoning more than 300 union workers who attacked the work of D. Aleksandravičius (destroyed scaffolding, equipment, tools, beaten workers, burned cars, etc.).

D. Aleksandravičius constantly informed the responsible authorities (Danish police) about the actions of the Scaffolding Club (attacks, threats, etc.), but the police stopped all investigations and did not prosecute anyone responsible, ”said the lawyer.

Daujotas said that although he had been informed in advance about the December 2019 attack, Danish police had dispatched only a few police officers who had been passively monitoring the attack and allowed rioters to destroy Lithuanian property.

“After the incident, D. Aleksandravičius filed complaints with the police, but the police stopped all investigations and could not find any person responsible. Only later, when we opened the case in international arbitration, did the police sanction a person (from over 300) with a minimal fine for riot.

No damage was ever compensated to D. Aleksandravičius. Both profitable clients and employees alienated from D. Aleksandravičius’s company for fear of the Scaffolding Club actions, ”said the lawyer.

Accused of social dumping

Thomas Stromsholdt, president of the Danish Scaffolding Workers’ Union, told Delfi there were problems with DS Bygger.

“We have found many issues related to employee safety, as well as that the scaffold was built illegally. As a union, we raised these issues with the company. In our work, safety is a matter of life and death,” he explained.

Stromsholdt further said that on December 1, 2019, a worker and a union member were assaulted while solving safety issues.

“I do not know if that led to the events of the next day. I emphasize that these events have nothing to do with the union, I cannot speculate on the motivation of the people involved.

In Denmark, we care about the safety of our employees and that they are treated fairly. This is one of the reasons why Denmark is a prosperous country and the Danes are really concerned about these issues, “said Stromsholdt.

Danish media previously reported that the Scaffolding Club accused D. Aleksandravičius of social dumping, that wages paid to Eastern European employees were much lower than those of locals. The scaffold overturned during the incident was also alleged to have been erected illegally.

R. Daujotas called these statements the disinformation of the Scaffolding Club.

“The scaffolding club constantly presented complaints to the responsible authorities, the activities of his company were constantly inspected (both job security and payment of salaries, etc.). However, so far there is no judicial decision or a responsible institution in which violations of the companies of D. Aleksandravičius have been established. The employer paid all taxes and salaries to the employees in an orderly manner, no infractions were found, ”he explained.

The lawyer added that in any event, even if such violations were found, it would in no way justify a violent attack and destruction of the business.

DS Byggeri is currently bankrupt.

“Both profitable customers and employees have alienated from the company for fear of the Scaffolding Club stock.

D. Aleksandravičius’s company had signed high-value contracts with suppliers, from whom it purchased materials with deferred payment. However, after the attack, the contracts could no longer be executed, the property was destroyed, and the workers spilled. Due to this, D. Aleksandravičius stopped receiving payment for the works, became indebted to the suppliers of materials and, as a result, had to declare bankruptcy, ”said R. Daujotas.

Danish model

D. Aleksandravičius himself said that he has been living with this case for the second year.

“Our goal is to be heard and compensate for losses, recover violently destroyed investments. We worked hard, received many orders, and the circle of customers expanded rapidly. However, everything was destroyed in a single attack. No responsible persons were found and my name and that of the company were tarnished.

We have decided to defend our rights and have received great support, as many foreign companies in Denmark have suffered similar actions. Although we have not received any help from responsible Lithuanian politicians and officials, we are glad that even some Danish citizens and politicians support us. The Danish parliament has even launched a parliamentary investigation. We believe in the success of our case and we are awaiting the decision of the arbitral tribunal ”, said the businessman.

He was at a construction site during an incident on December 2, 2019, and was hiding with his staff in a builder’s cabin.

Danish media explain that the police did not interfere in the conflict between DS Byggeri and the Scaffolding Club due to the so-called Danish model.

It is common in the country for labor relations disputes, for example between unions and employers, to be resolved without the intervention of third parties. Regulation in this area is very lax, for example, in Denmark there is not even a minimum wage.

R. Daujotas told “Delfi” that the story of D. Aleksandravičius in Denmark has received ambiguous opinions, and the positions of Danish politicians have also differed.

“Part of Danish society and politicians strongly support our position, saying that no one can be treated like this and that conflicts can only be resolved in a civilized way and not through violence. There is a long tradition in Denmark that trade unions can block and attacking companies that do not comply with the applicable rules.This has been done so far and is not to the liking of many businessmen and the public, both Danish and foreign.

The rest of Danish society and politicians support the side of the trade unions, which are reluctant to admit competing companies from other countries and support only Danish national companies. Trade unions have a big and strong voice in Denmark, they can lead to elections and therefore have the support of some politicians.
Our goal is to strengthen the position of the first party, to gain more public support and thus resolve the dispute in our favor, ”he said.

Terminated the contract

It has been unofficially announced that D. Aleksandravičius is demanding 7 million from Denmark. crowns, that is, almost 1 million. euros.

The entrepreneur claims this compensation on the basis of the 1992 bilateral investment protection agreement between Lithuania and Denmark. Following the action of D. Aleksandravičius, Denmark decided to terminate this agreement.

Mr Daujotas said that Denmark now claims that the agreement is no longer valid, thus it is alleged that the Lithuanian has no reason to make claims.

“However, Lithuania’s claims were made before the termination of the contract, therefore, from a legal point of view, such Danish argument is not substantiated. On the same basis, Denmark indicates that it will not comply in good faith with the arbitration award Therefore, if Denmark refuses to enforce the arbitration award in good faith, it will be enforced where the Danish state has assets, such as in the United States, Greenland and other parts of the world.

This will be important for bilateral relations, as the terminated investment agreement will no longer protect both Lithuanian investors in Denmark and Danes in Lithuania. Instead of neutral and impartial international arbitration, disputes should be resolved in local courts, according to local standards, not according to international standards. Of course, local courts may not always be favorable to foreign investors in disputes against the state, ”commented the lawyer.