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The draft law amendment proposes that, in certain cases, workers should be able to work only after they have been screened for COVID-19.
Those who are ill or suspected of being ill will need to be investigated, including an outbreak of coronavirus in the workplace, and the third case where an investigation is required will be on the list of activities where a periodic inspection is required.
The bill presented by the government has yet to be approved by the Seimas, it may change.
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 at a specific time be removed from work, not paid until the day they control it, which must be guaranteed 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 presents the results of the medical examination to the employer so that he can continue working.
The amendment also proposes that people who are ill or suspected of being ill should not be able to work in listed positions other than telework until authorized by their 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. Because of 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. In addition, the World Organization de la Salud has recognized that the disease has caused a pandemic throughout the world, ”the statement argues.
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, leading to disruption of continuity in the workplace. Proper handling of outbreaks is ensured, their spread is stopped, not only primary cases are warned but also secondary ”, indicates the explanatory note.
An earlier version of the project provided for the necessary research, which generated controversy, and on Monday no consensus could be reached on such a project in the government. 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.
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