More than half of Latvian employers pay their employees wages below the minimal monthly amount, said Director of the State Revenue Service Tax Control Office Sandra Karklina Admine on July 24.
She says SRS puts a lot of effort into combating grey economy. Combating envelope wages will be one of this year’s main priorities, she said. Such risks are present the most in the catering sector.
“Looking at the business sector in general, more than half of employers in this country pay wages below the minimal amount. 65% of entrepreneurs in the catering sector pay wages below the minimal amount, and 20% pay wages ranging from minimal to EUR 700,” said SRS representative.
She also said problems were most often found in restaurants situated in Riga and Pieriga. Problems often include insufficient work hour tracking, partial registration of transactions in cash registers, as well as employment of unregistered employees.
It should be said that amendments to the Criminal Law, providing criminal liability for not showing wage expenses in accounting documents, came to into force in Latvia last year. (BNN/Business World Magazine)