The Seimas has a lot of changes in the Labor Code: the changes are due both to the license and to the “mother’s and father’s days”

On the Seimas desk, a pile of amendments to the Labor Code.

One of them would leave employees idle without severance pay. Conservative Kazys Starkevičius presents this proposal to Parliament for its consideration. According to him, the changes were caused by the period of the COVID-19 pandemic, when workers who were in downtime found new jobs during quarantine and demanded the dismissal of the current employer. Changing the Labor Code would prevent abuse of employees.

“The state has paid subsidies, and now we have to go back to work and we have to encourage the employee to go back to work, and not just look for easy benefits, easy money. Only during quarantine, during a pandemic, would it apply as it was now, ”says Kazys Starkevičius, member of the TS-LKD faction.

“I think this is a fairly balanced offer that does not bind the employer; for example, an employee decides to go to another job during quarantine, even works there, and the employer has to pay severance, which is also incorrect.” because the employer is not to blame for the quarantine “- says Eugenijus Gentvilas, the largest of the faction of the Liberal Movement.

The opposition to Starkevičius’s proposal does not skimp on the arrows of criticism.

“This would create a negative precedent that during the quarantine, at a time when the labor market is shrinking, an employee can be removed from work without protection,” said Linas Kukuraitis, member of the Democratic Group on behalf of Lithuania.

“If a person is still looking for work at the time, because downtime is not a salary, then this should not be a reason to fire the person,” replied Algirdas Sysas, the senior of the Social Democratic Group.

“The quarantine is imposed by the decision of the state, and to see each person who will potentially leave their job to turn around, leave and return – let’s not see each person as a potential criminal,” added the Democrats on behalf of Lithuania, the elder Saulius Skvernelis.

In the case of teleworking, reimbursement of costs

For its part, the parliamentary minority also seeks to improve the labor code. The Social Democrats propose to ensure that the employer reimburses the costs incurred by the employee during teleworking. The rulers do not oppose this proposal.

“If a person is going to work on their car, it is usually compensated, then we have to start talking about paying for telecommuting for energy costs and what the person faces,” says A. Sysas.

“An employee is forced to create his own workplace in his own home, and if you imagine it, three children are screaming outside the wall?” Forgive me, it is not comfort unless you live in a three-story house, maybe it is, but if many employees work in poor conditions, and they should be compensated for it, “says E. Gentvilas.

Suggestions for “Mother’s Day” and “Father’s Day”

The opposition also raises the issue of “mother’s days and“ father’s day. ”So far, parents raising at least two children under the age of 12 have been able to receive two additional monthly rest days. Saulius Skvernelis proposes increase this age poster; according to him, there is no explanation why the Labor Code establishes such an age limit.

“It is very difficult to evaluate the money, because which employee is most productive and useful to you, whether you are rested, whose family is well or has a problem,” says S. Skvernelis.

“On all these issues, however, the Tripartite Council must fully consider and weigh how much it costs and weigh, how much it costs both the public and private sectors,” added Sysas.

“We really have to think about the comfort of families and that’s a deal for this deck of cards,” Gentville says.

Trade union representatives welcome the opposition’s proposals on “mothers ‘days” and “fathers’ days”; According to Inga Ruginienė, this would improve the social guarantees of employees.

“We have never had a good compatibility, we have always had problems in this area, such changes only contribute to the development of a better common product,” says I. Ruginienė, President of the Trade Union Confederation.

At that time, employers and employees disagreed with the Starkevičius bill. According to the Confederation of Employers, due to quarantine issues, companies cannot become scapegoats.

“The state declares the quarantine, an emergency and therefore there is downtime, which prevents people from going to work, so the employer cannot compensate the two-month compensation; it does not meet the criteria of logic and reasonableness, “commented Aurelija Maldutytė. member of the Lithuanian Employers’ Confederation.

“From a situation of helplessness, they begin to look for better options, even for those employers who are more socially responsible. It would be the least dishonest to blame an employee for that, ”says I. Ruginienė.

Once the Seimas approves the draft amendments to the Labor Code laws, further discussions on the changes will take place in the Tripartite Council.