Lithuania’s nitrogen fertilzser plant Achema said on February 15 it was considering suspending striking workers’ labour contracts, hiring new people to fill in their places.
“We can take certain collective action against the remaining protesters, it’s called a lockdown, a temporary suspension of labour contracts,” Achema’s chief legal officer Rytis Budrius said.
“It means that we can suspend the execution of striking workers’ labour contracts by not paying their wages, and we also gain the right to hire new people under temporary contracts to fill their places,” he added.
According to Birute Daskeviciene, head of Achema’s trade union, such suspension of labour contracts is impossible as it runs counter to Lithuania’s Labour Code.
“An employer can resort to a lockdown only in cases strictly defined by the Labour Code, and none of the conditions are met now. Therefore, Achema’s administration is planning to take illegal action against its workers,” Daskeviciene said.
In her words, the announcement about a possible suspension of labour contracts was an attempt to put pressure on workers to end the strike. The trade union would turn to court if the employer does that.
Under the Labour Code, an employer can temporarily suspend workers’ labour contracts if a trade union calls a strike that was postponed or deemed illegal by a court or if workers’ representatives fail to implement other agreements.
Achema workers went on an indefinite strike last week, demanding that the company signs a two-year collective agreement on new pay conditions. Achema CEO Ramunas Miliauskas said the company had no intention to do so.
According to Achema, 49 employees were still striking on February 15. (LRT/Business World Magazine)
