According to the prime minister, amendments have been approved and will be fully or partially incorporated into the wider social package, which the Tripartite Council has begun to consider. Afterwards, the whole legal package will be submitted to the Government which is committed to take into account proposals and remarks of its social partners. The Government will analyse the proposals and the draft laws again and will put them forward to the Seimas in May.
Among other things the amendments propose that companies which have trade unions and pay wages by 1.5 times higher than the country's average, and have not been penalised for hiring illegal workforce, would be allowed to dismiss workers much easier.
According to Butkevicius, the package of laws is not only about regulating labour relations. Additional amendments deal with social aspects, such as pension reform and the reduction of social fees paid by legal persons by 1 percentage point.
Butkevicius refuted claims that this is an attempt to liberalise the Labour Code. Such objective was not included in the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party's election programme.
"The word (liberalisation – ELTA) may trigger an unpleasant feeling to some. I would like to state that we, Social Democrats, clearly stand for more flexible regulation of labour relations. More flexible regulation of labour relations does not mean that workers will be forcibly dismissed. We must also think about easier employment and better conditions, for example, for students finding employment in summer," said Butkevicius.
The prime minister also emphasised that Lithuania currently placed 124th globally as regards regulation of labour relations. It is behind Latvia and Estonia. The prime minister says that flexible labour relations is significant for attracting direct foreign investment, boosting economic growth, creating new jobs and ensuring easier employment for young people.
"We must change the obsolete system and be more modern," the prime minister stated.
