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The draft amendment to the law states that, in some cases, employees can only work after they have been screened for COVID-19.
Those who become ill, or are suspected of being ill, will need to be investigated, and if a coronavirus outbreak has been identified in the workplace, and the third case where an investigation is required will be on the list of activities requiring inspections. periodic.
The Seimas will be asked to consider these amendments with extreme urgency.
It is proposed that when an outbreak is detected in the workplace, workers should only be able to work after they have been tested for disease. The National Center for Public Health would identify the employees and inform both them and the employer. This would apply not only to COVID-19 but also to other quarantine diseases or emergencies in the future.
It is proposed that an employee who refuses to be checked for illness on time, be removed from work, not paid until the day they control it, which must be insured by the employer. Another option is to assign work remotely. The schedule may not be recorded due to very important reasons, such as illness, attendance at family funerals, business trips.
The employee would be reinstated to his previous job from the date he provided the employer with the results of the medical examination so that he could continue working.
The amendment also proposes that ill or presumed ill people not be allowed to work in the listed positions, except telework, until authorized by the GP.
The Minister of Health will also approve lists of jobs and areas of activity in which employees can work only if they are previously evaluated and then periodically reviewed for diseases.
The costs of the periodic medical examinations and the average salary of the employees for the time spent on the medical examinations are paid by the employer, and for the medical examination before starting work, by the employee. It is proposed to add that during quarantine or emergency, the state can reimburse the health exam.
“COVID-19 is a particularly serious communicable disease. Due to this, the Government of the Republic of Lithuania declared an emergency situation at the state level throughout the country and throughout the territory of the Republic of Lithuania – quarantine. In addition, the World Health Organization has recognized that the disease has caused a pandemic throughout the world ”, argues the statement.
The government hopes that such an amendment will ensure a safer release and organization of individual jobs and areas of activity, allow for the timely detection of infections, isolation of exposed persons, or other means of controlling communicable diseases.
Currently, the law has no alternative but to work remotely when a person is suspected of having a dangerous infectious disease.
“This reduces the risk of spreading communicable diseases and major outbreaks, which cause disruption of continuity in the workplace. Proper handling of outbreaks is ensured, their spread is stopped, and warnings are issued not only about the occurrence of primary cases, but also secondary ”, says the explanatory note.
An earlier version of the draft provided for the necessary research, which was controversial, and a government consensus on such a project could not be reached on Monday. The issue was postponed due to discussions that people suspected of being ill who had been exposed to carriers of these pathogens would be subjected to the necessary examination if they refused or avoided the examination and thus endangered the health of those who surrounded them.
Compensation for the tests is set at 30 million. euros
According to the concept elaborated, the government has provided 30 million for the compensation of the COVID-19 investigation. All small and medium-sized businesses can apply for these funds.
Compensation would be provided to companies or other institutions that regularly conduct COVID-19 prophylactic tests for their employees.
The amount of compensation would be EUR 12 per rapid serological antibody test or quantitative serological laboratory test or rapid SARS-CoV-2 antigen test.
Invoices will be provided to justify the costs, indicating the number of tests performed and the unit cost of the tests. The support would be administered by the UAB Investicijų ir verlo guarantees.
At the meeting, the Minister of Economy and Innovation Aušrinė Armonaitė explained that, according to the new concept, support will be available not only to companies recognized as affected, but also to all small and medium-sized enterprises.
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