Official translation

REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA

LAW

ON LABOUR PROTECTION

Vilnius

7 October 1993, No.I-266

(As amended by 9 December 1997, No.VIII-561)

The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania

- recognising the regulations of social justice of the Constitution of the International Labour Organisation and of the May 10, 1944 declaration of the General Conference of the International Labour Organisation,

- recognising the right of every person to proper and adequate working conditions as declared in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

- taking into consideration the fact that occupational accidents and diseases as well as inadequate working conditions cause physical, moral, and economic damage to the people and the state,

- seeking to reduce as much as possible the probability that enterprise employees will be injured, get sick, or lose functional capacity due to working conditions,

shall establish a state policy of labour protection based on the following principles:

the priority of preserving the life, health, and functional capacity of employees over labour and production results,

the tripartite co-operation of state, employers', and employees' organisations,

the development of labour protection science,

stimulation of the production of safe work equipment as well as individual and collective labour protection equipment,

the establishment of unified labour protection requirements,

the responsibility of employers and employees for violation of standard acts of labour protection,

the foundation of labour protection and labour medicine services,

the establishment of economic levers which stimulate labour protection,

the establishment of a unified procedure for the preparation of labour protection specialists and for research of the causes of accidents and occupational diseases,

state control over labour protection,

and following Articles 48 and 49 of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, taking into consideration the economic conditions of the Republic of Lithuania, the perspectives thereof, the conventions and recommendations of the International Labour Organisation, and the experience of other countries, shall enact the Law on Labour Protection. This Law shall regulate labour protection in enterprises, institutions, and organisations (hereinafter referred to as "enterprise"), without regard to the forms of ownership and subordination thereof.

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Basic definitions

For the purpose of this Law:

1) the term "labour protection" ("labour protections") shall mean the whole of organisational, technical, economic, legal, hygienic, and prophylactic measures which are instituted to protect the health, life and functional capacity of people;

2) the term "employer" shall mean the owners or heads of enterprises of all types who are appointed, elected or who have in any other manner acquired the powers pursuant to the laws (bylaws, regulations, documents related to the founding of the enterprise) of the respective enterprise, including partnerships and personal enterprises, to conclude, change and cancel employment contracts, and who must ensure the fulfilment of the obligations according to this Law, other labour laws, collective agreements, and standard acts of labour protection.

When a contract is concluded between natural persons, the employer shall be a natural person.

3) The term "person authorised by the employer on labour protection issues" (hereinafter referred to as “person authorised by the employer”) shall mean the head of the division of the enterprise or any other person competent in labour protection issues to whom the employer has granted a part of his rights and duties on labour protection issues;

4) the term "employee" shall mean a person (worker, public employee) who works under an employment contract in a workplace furnished by the employer or person who is authorised by the employer, or a person who holds office in state and executive power institutions and to whom the term "employer" is not applicable;

5) the term "workplace" shall mean a place where an employee works or has to perform work agreed upon in the employment contract;

6) the term "working environment" shall mean the environmental area where the employee can be exposed to harmful and hazardous (physical, chemical, psychophysical, biological) factors;

7) the term "working conditions" shall mean the whole of the

factors of the working environment, including the nature of work,

the work and rest regime, and working relationships which have

direct influence on the welfare, health, and functions of the

employee;

8) the term "labour means" shall mean the devices, i.e.

materials, equipment, tools, appliances, machinery (machines) and

sets of machinery (machines), including potentially hazardous

machinery, which are used in the labour process to change an

object of work;

9) the term "harmful factor" shall mean the factor of the

working environment due to which an employee may lose functional

capacity or fall ill (or contract an occupational disease), or

whose long lasting influence may be hazardous to life;

10) the term "hazardous factor" shall mean the working

environment or working process factor which, under certain

accidental circumstances, may cause an employee to be traumatised

or killed or which may suddenly worsen an employee's health;

11) the term "potentially hazardous machinery" shall mean

machinery which poses a hazard to people's lives, health and

environment due to accumulated energy or processes taking place

therein;

12) the term "occupational disease" shall mean health

disorders of employees which were caused by the influence of a

harmful factor(s) of the working environment;

13) the term "accident" shall mean the sudden harm to an

employee's health due to the short-term influence of a hazardous,

harmful factor of the working environment and which causes said

employee to lose functional capacity for at least one day;

14) the term "statutory acts of labour protection" shall mean

the laws, resolutions of the Seimas and Government of the

Republic of Lithuania, and state or enterprise standards,

regulations, norms and rules, including hygiene rules, instructions,

approved in the established manner, which shall regulate the obligatory introduction and use of one or several indexes, conditions, actions, ways (methods) of effect, and technical and other means, as well as collective agreement provisions related to the labour protection issues;

15) the term "person of limited functional capacity" shall

mean persons whose work abilities are limited for reasons of

health (i.e.. invalids, pregnant women, workers who are

transferred to another job according to medical conclusions, old

age pensioners).

Article 2. Object of the Law on Labour Protection

The object of the Law on Labour Protection shall be the

relations between state government institutions, employers, and

employees as well as the establishment of the principal

requirements of labour protection or the procedure for the

establishment of such requirements, in order to protect the

lives, health, and functional capacity of employees.

Article 3. The Right of Employees to Work Safely

Employees shall have the right to work safely, regardless of

the type of activities of the enterprise, the profitability, the

workplace, the working environment, the nature of work, or the

employee's citizenship, race, nationality, sex, age, social

origin, or political or religious convictions.

Article 4. Application of the Law

This Law shall be applicable to:

1) enterprises which are located in the territory of the

Republic of Lithuania, as well as to enterprises which are

located abroad but which are under the jurisdiction of the

Republic of Lithuania;

2) foreign capital enterprises which are located in the

territory of the Republic of Lithuania and enterprises in which a

part of the fixed capital belongs to a foreign investor (joint

enterprises) and which are located in the territory of the

Republic of Lithuania, provided that it has not otherwise been

established in international agreements or in the founding

documents of the enterprise; and

3) citizens of other states and stateless persons who work

in enterprises which are under the jurisdiction of the Republic

of Lithuania.

Article 5. Restrictions on the Application of the Law

Labour protection for citizens of the Republic of Lithuania

who work in foreign enterprises which are not under the

jurisdiction of the Republic of Lithuania shall be regulated by

the laws of the state in which said citizens work.

The Government of the Republic of Lithuania shall have the

right to restrict the application of this Law:

1) under extreme working conditions, when people's safe

activities are established by other standard acts; and

2) upon declaration of an emergency (military) situation as

well as under other special circumstances which pose a threat to

national security.

Labour protection for employees of civil aviation, fish

industry fleet, and sea, river, railroad, and auto transport

shall be regulated by this Law as well as by corresponding

standard acts which have been prepared based on this Law.

Labour protection for persons who are not connected by an

employment contract shall be regulated by standard acts which

have been prepared based on this Law.

CHAPTER 2. REGULATION OF LABOUR PROTECTION

Article 6. State Control of Labour Protection

The labour protection policy shall be shaped by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. The function of state control of labour protection shall be carried out by the Minister of Social Security in observance of the laws of the Republic of Lithuania and this Law, the resolutions of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania, and other standard acts of labour protection. The Minister of Social Security shall represent the interests of the Republic of Lithuania in other countries and international organisations on issues of labour protection.

Article 7. The Commission of Labour Protection of the Republic of Lithuania

The Commission of Labour Protection of the Republic of

Lithuania (hereinafter referred to as "the Commission of Labour

Protection") shall be established according to the tripartite

principal in order to regulate the interests and relations of the

State, employers, and employees by forming and executing a labour

protection policy. The establishment procedure and the functions

of the Commission of Labour Protection shall be established by the

Statute of this Committee, which shall be approved by the

Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 8. The Labour Protection Fund

The Labour Protection Fund shall be established in order to

implement preventive measures of labour protection, to inform

society, and to finance the work of the Commission of Labour

Protection.

The means of the Fund of Labour Protection shall comprise:

1) fees of the parties of the Commission of Labour

Protection;

2) a portion of the Insurance Preventive Fund;

3) a portion of the State Social Security Fund and the Labour

Accident Insurance Fund; and

4) contributions from natural and juridical persons.

The Statute of the Labour Protection Fund shall be approved

by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 9. Authorisation of Local Governments on Issues of Labour Protection

Town and regional councils shall have the right to:

1) demand that enterprises (employers) announce the

commencement of enterprise production activities as well as

changes in the type of activities; and

2) upon consent of the enterprises, draw up joint programs

of labour protection and prepare means, co-ordinate the

implementation thereof, and organise the funds allotted to the

enterprises into a co-operative for this purpose.

Article 10. Training and Instruction of Labour Protection Specialists

Labour protection specialists shall be trained in

establishments of higher education of the Republic of Lithuania.

The procedure for raising the qualification of labour

protection specialists shall be established by the Government of

the Republic of Lithuania.

Schools of general education shall be required to train

pupils in the general requirements of labour and living

protection.

Students of higher educational and vocational institutions

shall be required to be trained in the requirements of labour

protection according to their respective speciality or

profession.

Employees of enterprises shall be trained and instructed on

issues of labour protection according to the requirements of

Article 30 of this Law.

Article 11. Financing of the Study and Means of Labour Protection

The labour protection means in enterprises shall be financed

by the employers.

Scientific research of labour protection shall be co-ordinated

by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Scientific research of labour protection shall be financed

from the funds of the employers and the state budget according to

the procedure established by the Government of the Republic of

Lithuania.

Enterprises which produce means of labour protection shall be

entitled to tax benefits according to the procedure established

by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 12. Rights of Trade Unions

Trade unions shall defend the interests of the protection of

the health and lives of their members in the workplace in

observance of the Law on Trade Unions of the Republic of

Lithuania.

Article 13. The Structure of Labour Protection in Enterprises

Employers shall be responsible for labour protection in

their	respective enterprises.

In order to create safe and healthful working conditions,

employers shall be required to establish labour protection and

medical services according to the procedure established in

Article 14 of this Law, as well as to create conditions for the

functioning of the enterprise's labour protection committee.

Article 14. Labour Protection and Medical Services in Enterprises

For the purposes of labour protection and hygiene

maintenance, supervision, control, and consultation, employers

shall establish enterprise labour protection and medical services

or shall hire another organisation (person) to carry out these

functions.

Specialists of labour protection and medical services shall

be required to have appropriate theoretical and practical

training.

The functions of labour protection services in enterprises

which have less than 50 employees may be carried out by a

person(s) who has been appointed by the employer and who has

training for such work as indicated in the second part of this

Article.

Labour protection services of enterprises, organisations or

persons hired by employers to carry out the functions of labour

protection services, and persons appointed by employers to carry

out the functions of labour protection services in a given

enterprise shall be directly responsible to their employers.

If a labour protection service is not established in an

enterprise according to the procedure and conditions established

in the first, second, and third parts of this Article, the

functions of this service shall be carried out by the employer.

Employers who have established labour protection services in

their respective enterprises shall inform the State Labour

Inspectorate thereof according to the established procedure.

A model statue of enterprise labour protection services shall

be approved by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. The

statute of the labour protection services of individual

enterprises shall be approved by the respective employer.

Taking the number of employees working in an enterprise as

well as the harmfulness and danger of the working environment

into account, either medical services (dispensaries) shall be

established in enterprises or appropriate institutions or persons

shall be hired for the supervision of the health of employees.

The functions and founding procedure of enterprise medical

services shall be established by the Government of the Republic

of Lithuania.

Article 15. Labour Protection Committees

Labour protection committees shall be established in enterprises in which more than 50 employees work. Said committees

shall comprise an equal number of representatives delegated by the employer and he trade union of the enterprise; in the event that there are no trade union in the enterprise, employees shall be represented by authorised persons elected in a meeting (conference) of the employees according to the procedure established in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Collective Agreements and Collective Labour Agreements.

Labour protection committees may be established in

enterprises which have less than 50 employees either on the

initiative of the employer, or by agreement between the employer and trade union, or on the demand of at least half of the employees.

Labour protection committees shall hear out and evaluate the

activities of the employers, the heads of the enterprise subdivisions, and the labour protection service on issues of labour protection, shall plan measures for the improvement of labour protection and the funds necessary for the implementation of said measures, shall oversee the use of the funds and the implementation of the measures, and shall examine the reasons and circumstances of accidents and occupational diseases. The committee shall adopt its decisions by agreement between of the committee parties. The employer must implement the adopted decisions.

The work of the committee shall be supervised by the chairman - employer or the person authorised by him. The committee shall elect a representative of the trade union (in case there is no trade union in the enterprise - a person authorised by the employees) to be the committee secretary. The committee shall hold meetings at the time set in the regulations of the labour protection committee of the enterprise, as well as in the event of an accident at work or when an employee is taken ill with an occupational disease.

Members of the labour protection committee of the enterprise (representatives of trade unions of employees or authorised persons of employees) may be dismissed from work on the initiative of the

employer only upon obtaining agreement on said dismissal with the

State Labour Inspectorate.

The members of the labour protection committee of the enterprise shall be trained, at the employer’s expense, in working in the committee at special study courses, seminars and other modes of training on labour protection issues.

For the time which the member of the labour protection committee of the enterprise spends carrying out the duties vested in him by the committee, he shall be paid the average salary.

A model statute for enterprise labour protection committees

shall be approved by the Commission of Labour Protection. The

statute of each enterprise labour protection committee shall be

approved by the employer and the trade union of the enterprise (if there is no trade union - labour protection committee of the enterprise).

CHAPTER 3. REQUIREMENTS FOR WORKING ENVIRONMENT, WORKPLACES, JOBS, AND INDUSTRIAL LIVING CONDITIONS

Article 16. General Requirements for Working Environment and Workplaces

The working environment and workplaces must meet the

requirements set forth in this Law and other standard acts of

labour protection.

New and reconstructed enterprises as well as the

subdivisions thereof shall be accepted for operation according to

the procedure established by the Government of the Republic of

Lithuania.

Article 17. Standard Acts of Labour Protection which Regulate the Equipment of Workplaces

The requirements for the equipment of workplaces and the

surroundings thereof shall be established by state and enterprise

standards, state norms, and rules.

Places which are located in premises allotted to meet the

social-living needs of the employees of the enterprise shall be

equivalent to the workplaces (according to item 5 of Article 1).

The factors of a working environment which are established

according to standards and norms must not exceed quantities which

could cause a person who is either working or who is no longer

working to suffer health disorders or occupational diseases.

The standards, norms, rules, and instruction of labour

protection shall be prepared and approved in the procedure

established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 18. Labour Means and the Supervision thereof

Only means of labour which are technically accurate and which

meet safety requirements shall be permitted to be utilised.

A list of technical equipment which is potentially dangerous

and which poses a threat to employees, residents, or the

environment shall be approved by the Government of the Republic

of Lithuania; the safe utilisation, supervision, and control of

said equipment shall be established by standard acts as well as

by the technical documents of such equipment.

Article 19. Requirements for the Internal Traffic of Enterprises

Employers shall be responsible for safe traffic in their

respective enterprises.

Transport traffic in the territory of enterprises shall be

organised according to the traffic rules of the mode of

transport; exceptions may be made for special (technological)

transport.

The rules of traffic for special (technological) transport

shall be prepared by the employers according to the requirements

of standard acts of standard acts of labour protection.

Article 20. Requirements for the Utilisation of Harmful and Hazardous Materials

Employers who produce, use, transport, or keep materials

which are harmful or hazardous to people's health (material which

easily ignite, explode) shall execute measures to ensure the

safety of the health and environment of their employees as well

as the working environment thereof.

Employees must be trained and instructed in work with

harmful or hazardous materials, and must be provided with means

for individual and collective safety.

The production, utilisation, transport, and custody of

harmful and hazardous materials shall be established by standard

acts of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 21. Requirements for Produced Products

Production which is produced and sold by an enterprise which

is later ascribed to labour means must conform to the

requirements of labour protection established in standard acts.

The conformity of production to the requirements of labour

protection shall be indicated in certified or technical

documents.

Upon proving that labour means are harmful to people's

health or is life-threatening, the production thereof shall be

prohibited by the State Labour Inspectorate.

Article 22. Requirements for Labour Organisation

Employers shall be required to organise jobs and create

conditions, including salaries, in such a way that would

stimulate employees to observe labour protection requirements.

Conditions which ensure labour protection must be established

in the documentation of labour (production) organisation and

technical provision according to the requirements of standard

acts of labour protection.

Article 23. Standard Acts of Safe Organisation and Carrying out of Works

Work must be organised according to the requirements of

standard acts of labour protection.

Employers shall prepare, according to standard acts of labour

protection organisation and implementation as well as technical

documents of labour means, labour protection instructions for

employees which employees must sign to confirm their acquaintance

therewith. Employers, in conformity with the State Labour

Inspectorate, shall compile a list of their employees'

professions for which labour protection instructions have not

been prepared.

When requirements for labour protection have not yet been

established in standard acts of labour protection or if there are

no concrete requirements in state standards and rules which must

be observed, employers shall prepare and approve instructions for

the organisation and implementation of labour protection according

to the Law and the technical documents of labour means.

The requirements for the rules and instructions for the

organisation and implementation of labour protection shall be

equivalent to the employees' official regulations.

Article 24. Obligatory Health Examinations

Employees who work under hazardous, harmful, or very harmful

conditions (Article 67) shall be required to have their health

examined in advance (upon beginning work), periodically, for

certain jobs, and after cancelling their employment contracts.

Persons under the age of 18 shall be required to have their

health examined upon beginning work and annually thereafter until

they reach the age of 18. In some professions, young employees

shall be required to have their health examined upon beginning

work and periodically thereafter until they reach the age of 21

if their work poses a risk to their health.

In the food industry, public nutrition, trade, and water-

supply enterprises, medical treatment, disease prevention, and

children's institutions, as well as in some other enterprises,

medical examinations of employees must be carried out with the

goal of protecting the health of residents.

Employers shall pay for expenditures related to periodical

medical examinations and shall also pay employees an average

salary for time spent having medical examinations performed. The

procedure for payment of periodical medical examinations as well

as for payment of an average salary to employees for time spent

having medical examinations performed shall be established by the

Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Employees who refuse to have their health examined at the

established time shall be dismissed from work and shall not be

paid a salary. Such a refusal shall be considered to be a

violation of labour discipline and may act as the basis for an

employer to dismiss the employee from work in accordance with

laws. The conclusions of an employee's medical examination shall

be uniformly obligatory for both the employer and the employee.

A list of professions, jobs, and productions which require

the employees thereof (including persons under the age of 18 and,

for some professions, under the age of 21) to have their health

examined upon beginning work and periodically thereafter, as well

as the procedure for examinations, shall be established by the

Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 25. Suspension of Work

The State Labour Inspector and enterprise labour protection

committees shall have the right to demand, by their own

resolution, that an employer (or person authorised thereby)

suspend work if:

1) the employees are not trained to work safely;

2) the labour means are defective or if, due to a state of

repair, conditions may be or have been created for accidents or

sudden occupational diseases;

3) the working environment has become dangerous to the

health or lives of the employees due to technological or labour

process violations;

4) the employees are not provided with the necessary means

for collective and individual protection at work;

In the event that the employer (or person authorised

thereby) refuses to implement a requirement to suspend work, or

if the employer (or person authorised thereby) is absent, the

State Labour Inspector shall suspend work and, if necessary,

shall see to it that the employees leave the dangerous zone.

The State Labour Inspectorate may suspend work in the cases

indicated in the second part of Article 21 of this Law.

An employer shall pay average wages to employees for the time when the work has been suspended in the cases provided for in the first part of this Article.

Article 26. Material Requirements

Enterprises shall be equipped with facilities (places) for

resting, the changing and storage of clothes and footwear, and

sanitary and personal hygiene (washrooms and lavatories, as well

as personal hygiene facilities for women) according to the

procedure established by standard acts.

Material provisions in enterprises in which the working

conditions are harmful or hazardous shall be arranged in

compliance with the special requirements thereof.

Standard acts of labour protection shall establish special

requirements for the equipment of various types of material

facilities and the provision of services as well as the quantity

and quality indexes thereof.

Enterprises shall be equipped with dispensaries and places

for taking meals taking into consideration the number of

employees and in accordance with the requirements of standards

for the equipment of corresponding premises.

Article 27. Requirements for Living Premises

Temporary living premises provided for employees by the

employers due to the itinerant nature of the work must meet the

minimal living and hygienic requirements of such premises.

CHAPTER 4. DUTIES AND RIGHTS OF EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES

SUB-CHAPTER 1. DUTIES AND RIGHTS OF EMPLOYERS

Article 28. Duties of Employers

Employers must adhere to this Law and carry out the

requirements of other standard acts of labour protection:

1) to inform the State Labour Inspectorate of the

commencement of exploitation of an enterprise and its divisions;

2) to instruct and train employees to work safely and to

check the knowledge thereof;

3) while drawing up employment contracts and periodically

thereafter, when the production (working) process changes, to

inform employees of hazardous, harmful and other risk factors in

workplaces and the influence thereof on their health;

4) to supervise the observance of labour protection requirements by employees, to suspend the employee from duties without paying him a workpay for that day (shift), if, at work during working hours, he is in a state of intoxication, under the influence of consciously used narcotic drugs or toxic substances;

5) to provide enterprises, workplaces and employees with

safe equipment, to implement safe working and technological

processes, to provide employees with means of labour protection,

and to properly equip industrial living premises;

6) to organise medical services and health examinations of

employees according to Articles 14, 24, and 26;

7) in the established manner, to report accidents and

occupational diseases (Article 74), to create conditions for the

research of the causes thereof, and to compensate for health

injuries (Articles 78 and 79);

8) to create conditions for organisational structures of

labour protection (indicated in Articles 13, 14 and 15 of this

Law) to function;

9) to organise the work of employees according to a

physiologically-based regime of work and rest;

10) to organise, according to the established procedure,

research of workplaces and the work environment as well as tests

of the methods being used for collective and individual safety;

11) taking into consideration the medical or disablement

conclusions of the established commission (Article 33), to

transfer employees to other jobs;

12) to insure employees from occupational accidents and

diseases according to the established procedure;

13) to approve the instructions of labour protection of the

enterprise and official instructions and to carry out the

obligations of collective agreements and other duties of labour

protection;

14)	to draw up a nominal roll of employees working under the employment contract;

15) at the employee’s request, to issue free of charge a reference from his place of work (duties, qualification of the employee, period of employment, rate of pay).

Article 29. Testing of the Labour Protection Qualifications of Employers or the Persons Authorised by them

Prior to the commencement of enterprise exploitation (the

provisions of services) and not less frequently than every 5 years thereafter, an employer, his authorised person shall, in a manner prescribed by the Minister of Social Security and Labour, submit a notification to the State Labour Inspectorate regarding the testing of the labour protection qualifications of the employer, his authorised person in an enterprise.

The list of the employers who are released from the testing shall be approved by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. Release from the testing shall not release an employer from the responsibility for safety at work in an enterprise.

The person indicated in the first part of this Article, who is authorised by the employer (the head of a separate structural subdivision of the enterprise, situated at the location (territory) other than the enterprise), shall be tested in the labour protection qualifications and shall submit the notification to the State Labour Inspectorate regarding the testing of his labour protection qualifications in the same manner as the employer.

Article 30. Instructing and Certification of Employees in Labour Protection

Employers may not appoint employees to a job until the

latter has been instructed in safe methods of work.

While drawing up labour contracts, transferring employees to

other jobs, and changing work (production) processes, production

technology, or work conditions, as well as if the standards,

norms, rules, or instructions for labour protection change,

employers shall be required to instruct employees in labour

protection.

Only employees who have acquired special knowledge and who

have passed an examination on labour protection shall be

permitted to supervise or work with potentially dangerous

technical equipment and/or carry out hazardous work. Enterprises

shall only acquire the right to certify employees who work with

potentially dangerous equipment or technology, who work in

hazardous production, or who carry out potentially dangerous jobs

upon receiving a permit from the State Labour Inspectorate.

The procedure for instruction and certification of employees

in labour protection in enterprises shall be established by the

Minister of Health Care.

Article 31. Provision of Employees with Means of Labour Protection

Employers shall give employees work clothes and footwear as

well as other means of individual and collective labour protection

free of charge and in accordance with the procedure and

conditions established in standard acts.

Employers shall be required to organise the storage, drying,

laundering, cleaning, and mending of work clothes and footwear

and other means of individual safety.

Means of labour protection must be checked periodically.

Work clothes and footwear as well as other means of labour

protection must adapted to the work, must be comfortable to wear,

and may not create additional hazards to the health of the

employees.

Employees who, due to the nature of their jobs, get dirty at

work must be provided with personal hygiene supplies (soap,

towels) free of charge and according to the established norms. In

jobs where skin may come into contact with harmful substances,

washing agents and protective pastes shall be provided.

The minimum norms of work clothes and footwear and means of

individual safety and personal hygiene, as well as the

periodicity of examination of means of labour protection, shall be

established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 32. Organisation of Medical Services

In the event of accidents or sudden sickness at work,

employers shall be required to ensure their employees of prompt

medical aid.

If it is not necessary to call an ambulance, the transport

to treatment institutions of employees who have fallen ill or

suffered a trauma in the workplace shall be organised by the

employer (or person authorised thereby).

The procedure for the provision of medical services to

employees in an enterprise shall be established in the Statute of

the dispensaries of enterprises (Article 14).

Article 33. Duty of Employers to Transfer Employees to other Jobs for Health Reasons

An employee who, according to a medical or disablement

conclusion of the established commission, cannot carry out the

agreed job (duties) because it poses a threat to his or her

health or because his or her work may be hazardous to others must

be transferred, upon agreeing thereto, to a job which corresponds

to his or her state of health, and, if possible, to his or her

qualifications (profession), or to another job.

If an employee does not agree to be transferred to the job

which has been offered or if there is no job to which he or she

could be transferred, the employer, in observance of the law,

shall discharge the employee from work according to item 10 of

Article 26 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Employment

Contracts, barring the exception established in the third part of

this Article.

In the event that the health of an employee worsens due to

work in an enterprise (inability to carry out the previous job

due to injury, occupational disease, or other damage to health)

the employee shall be suspended from work and, if there is no

possibility of transferring him or her to another job according

to the first part of this Article, he or she shall be paid an

average salary until he or she recovers or is declared to be an

invalid. Upon declaring an employee to be an invalid, said

employee may be dismissed from work in accordance with the law

and based on item 10 of Article 26 of the Law of the Republic of

Lithuania on Employment Contracts.

Article 34. The Duties of Two or More Employers in Organising Jobs in the Same Enterprise, Territory, or Workplace

If two or more employers are carrying out work in the same

enterprise, territory, or workplace, they shall be required to

organise labour in such a way that the labour protection of all of

the employees be guaranteed, regardless of which of the employers

the employment contract was signed with. The employers, from

their distance, shall appoint one employer who shall organise and

be responsible for the safety of all of the employees working in

the same enterprise, territory, or workplace. Such an agreement

shall be made official in writing.

Article 35. Rights of Employers

In order to ensure the safety of employees at work,

employers shall have the right to:

1) demand that employees observe the standard acts of labour

protection;

2) impose disciplinary punishments on employees who violate

the standard acts of labour protection and demand, according to

the established procedure, that damage be compensated for;

3) dismiss an employee from work when the said employee violates the labour protection requirements established by statutory acts, provided that prior to this, a disciplinary penalty for the violation of labour protection has been at least once imposed on him during the last twelve months;

4) demand that other enterprises (employers) compensate for

losses suffered due to the fact that acquired production,

projects, or services did not conform with the requirements of

standard acts of labour protection;

5) to receive information on labour safety from state

institutions of administration;

6) to participate in the examinations of the State Labour

Inspectorate or to charge other employees of the enterprise to

participate therein, and to become acquainted with the

examination material;

7) to establish stricter labour protection requirements in

the enterprise than are provided for in the standard acts of

labour protection. Stricter labour protection requirements in an

enterprise shall be legalised in collective treaties and

collective agreements, and may not contradict the laws of the

Republic of Lithuania or the standard acts of labour protection;

and

8) to transfer a portion of their rights and duties on

issues of labour protection to a competent employee(s) of the

enterprise.

Article 36. The Transfer of a Portion of the Employer's Rights and Duties on Issues of Labour Protection to the Persons Authorised by the Employer

The employer shall make the transfer of a portion of his rights and duties to the employee (competent person) he authorises while concluding an employment contract. If the employment contract between the employer and the person he authorises has been concluded, the transfer of a portion of the rights and duties on issues of labour protection shall be executed in the form of the employee’s order which has been co-ordinated with the authorised person, or the said transfer may be provided for in the authorised person’s job requirements which are approved by the employer.

Persons authorised by an employer shall exercise the powers vested in him and shall be responsible for the labour protection of employees in the enterprise division and workplaces which have been assigned to him, with the exception of cases when he has informed the employer in writing of a hazard to the health or lives of the employees (which he could not eliminate himself) and the employer has not taken measures or created conditions for the authorised person to take necessary measures to ensure safe labour. When transferring a portion of his rights and duties on the issues of labour protection to the head of a separate structural division which is situated at the location (territory) other than the enterprise, the employer shall authorise him and empower to take all the necessary measures in case of danger to the employee’s health or life.

The transfer of an employer's rights and duties on issues of

labour protection to an authorised person shall not release the

employer from the responsibility to ensure safe and healthy work

conditions in the enterprise and subdivisions and workplaces

thereof.

SUB-CHAPTER II. RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF EMPLOYEES

Article 37. Duties of Employees

Employees shall be required to:

1) protect their own health, refrain from harming the health

of other employees, know how to work safely, and know and carry

out the requirements of standard acts of labour protection;

2) observe the rules for the exploitation of machines and

mechanisms as well as the instruction of labour safety; refrain

from working with technically irregular means of labour and inform

their employer (person authorised thereby) thereof;

3) work with work clothes and footwear and utilise means of

individual and collective safety if corresponding rules or

instructions so require;

4) to take measures and, in accordance with their competence

and possibilities, eliminate factors which may cause traumas or

accidents, and immediately inform the employer (authorised

person) thereof;

5) to inform the employer of person authorised thereby of

traumas which occurred during work hours and of sudden health

disorders which are related to work;

6) have their health examined according to the established

procedure (Article 24);

7) carry out other legitimate instructions of employers,

persons authorised thereby, and officials controlling labour

safety.

The individual duties of employees to ensure safe labour

shall be established by the rules, duties, and labour protection

instructions of the internal labour procedure of the enterprise.

Article 38. Rights of Employees

Employees shall have the right to:

1) demand that employers ensure safe labour and provide

appropriate work clothes and footwear and means of individual

safety according to the established procedure (Article 31);

2) learn from their employers (authorised persons) of

factors which exist in their work environment that are harmful of

hazardous to their health;

3) familiarise themselves with the results of advance and

periodical health examinations (Article 24); in the event that

they do not agree with examination results, to have a repeat

examination;

4) refuse to work if so doing poses a danger to their health

or lives (Article 39) or if they have not been trained to carry

out said job safely;

5) demand, in the established procedure, that damage to

their health caused by unsafe working conditions be compensated

for;

6) negotiate with their employer (person authorised thereby)

concerning the improvement of labour safety according to the

procedure established in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on

Collective Agreements;

7) address trade unions and the committee of labour

protection of the enterprise concerning labour safety.

Article 39. Procedure for Refusal to Work

In cases established in item 4 of Article 38 of this Law,

employees shall inform (orally or in writing) their employers

(persons authorised thereby) of the reasons for their refusal to

work.

Disagreements (disputes) concerning an employee's refusal

to work shall, within 5 days, be settled, according to the choice of a disputing party, by the committee of labour protection of the respective enterprise or the State Labour Inspectorate, or the court in the manner prescribed by law.

The groundless refusal to work shall be considered the violation of labour discipline.

Employees shall be paid an average salary for time which

they have refused to work for a substantiated reason. An employee

shall not be paid for time which he or she has refused to work if

reasons stated therefor are groundless, and losses resulting

therefrom shall be compensated to the employer from the

employee's account according to the procedure established by

laws.

CHAPTER 5. WORK AND REST TIME

Article 40. Working Hours (Shifts)

The normal working hours for employees in enterprises may not

exceed 40 hours per week.

The length of a workday (shift) shall be established

according to the number of workdays (shifts) per week.

The length of a workday (shift), including overtime, may not exceed 10 hours a day, and in the cases provided for in Article 44 and the third part of Article 48 of this Law, the length of the workday (shift) (together with a break for rest and meals) may be up to 12 hours a day.

In the exceptional cases, the hours (shift) worked per day by employees of certain categories (employees of institutions of health care, social care, child care, as well as employees of energy and communication specialised services, and employees of accident management specialised services), as well as by men on duty on the premises may exceed the limits on working hours, established in the third part of this Article. In this case, an average length of a working week must not exceed 48 hours, and the rest period between the shifts must be at least 24 hours. The list of occupations to which these working and rest conditions are applied, shall be approved by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 41. Shortened Work Hours

Shortened work hours shall be established as such:

1) 36 hours per week for employees between the ages of 16 to

18, and 24 hours per week for persons between the ages of 14 to

16;

2) the weekly work hours for pupils who work during their

free time in the course of the school year may not exceed half of

the maximum work hours established in item 1 of this Article;

3) 36 hour for employees who work in very harmful work

conditions (Article 67). The concrete length of a workday (shift)

shall be established by the Government of the Republic of

Lithuania, taking into consideration the harmfulness of the

working conditions; and

4) work hours for persons of limited functional capacity

shall be determined according to the conclusions of the

established committee.

Shortened work hours shall be established for employees of

some categories (i.e.. teachers, doctors) by the Government of

the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 42. Establishment of the Number of Workdays per Week, the Beginning of Work, the End of Work, and Breaks

The number of workdays per week, the beginning and end of

the workday, breaks to rest and eat, and additional and special

breaks during work shall be established in the rules of internal

work procedure and the work (shift) schedule, which shall be

approved in collective agreements according to the established

procedure. In working shifts, equal change of shifts must be

guaranteed.

A five-day work week with two days off shall be established

for employees.

For enterprises in which a five-day work week is impossible

due to the nature of production or other conditions, a six-day

work week with one day off shall be established.

In the event of a six-day work week, the workday may not

exceed 7 hours if the weekly norm is 40 hours, 6 hours if the

weekly norm is 36 hours, and 4 hours if the weekly norm is 24

hours.

The rules of internal work procedure as well as the work

schedule shall be made public at least 2 weeks prior to their

coming into force.

Employers shall inform the local government of changes in

the enterprises work schedule at least 2 weeks in advance.

Employees' working hours and overtime shall be marked on the

registers, the form of which is determined by the Department of Statistics at the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Peculiarities of work hours for institutions of state

management shall be established by the Government of the Republic

of Lithuania.

Article 43. Holidays, Work Hours on the Eves of Holidays and Days Off

The enterprises shall be closed on the following holidays:

1 January - New Year’s Day;

16 February - Day of Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania;

Sunday and Monday - Christian Easter Days (according to the Western tradition);

the first Sunday in May - Mother’s Day;

6 July - Coronation of Mindaugas - Day of the State;

1 November - All Saints’ Day (All Souls’ Day);

25 and 26 December - Christmas Days.

It shall be permitted to do the works which cannot be stopped due to production and technical conditions (enterprises which work continuously), the works necessary for rendering services to the population, as well as urgent repair works, loading or unloading operations.

On the eves of holidays, the work hours of employees, with

the exception of those indicated in Article 41 of this Law, shall

be shortened by one hour if a five-day or six-day working week is being worked.

If a six-day working week is being worked, work should not exceed 5 hours on the eve of days off.

Article 44. Summary Record of Work Time

In enterprises which work continuously, as well as in shops,

sections, jobs with an interrupted working day (shift) regime, and jobs in which the restrictions on the length of a working day or working week, established for specific categories of employees, cannot be applied due to production, technical or other conditions, upon the permission of the State Labour Inspectorate, a summary record of work time may be introduced, so that the number of working hours established for the certain category of employees should not be exceed during the period of the record. If the summary record of work time is being used, the uninterrupted rest period during a day and a week, established by this Law, must be guaranteed. If the number of normal working hours established for the certain category of employees is exceeded during the summary record of work time, the employees shall be provided with a day off (days off) or they shall be paid in accordance with the procedure established in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Wages. The specific form of compensation shall be established in a collective agreement or by agreement between the employer and employee.

Article 45. Night Work and the Limitation thereof

Night work shall embrace the time from 10 o'clock p.m. to 6

o'clock a.m.

Persons named in Article 61 and in the second part of

Article 63, as well as persons who are prohibited from night work

according to medical conclusions, shall not be permitted to work

nights.

It shall be prohibited to assign night work without

agreement of the employee to the following persons:

1) employees who are singly (father or mother) raising or

taking care (guardian) of children who are under the age of 8;

and

2) disabled persons if the commissions which establish

disability do not prohibit such work for them.

In the event of the night work, the established length of working hours (shift) shall be reduced by one hour. This provision shall not apply to the workers and civil servants for whom a shortened working hours have already been provided (item 3 of the first part of Article 41, the second part of Article 41). The night work length may not be shortened in the enterprises of continuos production, and when working in shifts a six-working-day week with one day off.

Article 46. Reduced Work Hours

Upon agreement of the employee with the employer, a reduced work

day or reduced work week may be established.

Employers shall be required to establish work schedules of

reduced work days or reduced work weeks if such is requested by:

a pregnant woman or a woman who has a child under the age of

14 or a child who has been declared a invalid under the age of

16; a father who is singly raising a child under the age of 14 or

a guardian who is raising a child of said age; an invalid; or a

person who is nursing an ill family member and who has presented

a medical conclusion thereon.

Work in reduced work hour conditions shall not limit the

employee's labour rights.

The procedure for establishing reduced work days and reduced

work weeks shall be established by the Government of the Republic

of Lithuania. Other reduced work hour regimes which are more

favourable to the employee may be established in collective

contracts, collective agreements, and employment contracts.

Article 47. Being on Duty in the Enterprise or at Home

In special cases, when the order in the enterprise must be ensured or execution of urgent works must be guaranteed, the employer may instruct the employee, not more frequently than once a month, and upon the employee’s consent - not more frequently than once a week, to be on duty in the enterprise or at home, upon the end of a working day or on a day off, or during holidays.

The length of time the employee is on duty in the enterprise together with the length of a working day (shift) (when the employee is on duty upon the end of the working day (shift)) may not exceed the length of the working day (shift) established in the third part of Article 40 of this Law, and the length of time the employee is on duty on a day off and during holidays, as well as when he is on duty at home may not exceed 8 hours a day. Being on duty in the enterprise shall be equate with working time, and being on duty at home - with at least one-third of working time.

The employee shall, within the next ten days, be granted for being on duty (in the enterprise or at home) leisure time of the same length as the length of being on duty in the enterprise or the length of being on duty (at home), equated with working time.

Pregnant women and the individuals under eighteen years of age, as well as disabled persons may not be instructed to be on duty in the enterprise or at home. It shall be allowed to instruct the women who have children under 14 years of age, men who solely support children under 14 years of age, as well as the individuals who look after the disabled persons to be on duty in the enterprise or at home only upon their consent.

Article 48. Overtime Work

Work which employees perform during time in excess of the

length of work hours established in collective agreements or the

rules of internal procedure shall be considered to be overtime

work.

Work of employers or persons authorised thereby and of other

employees indicated in laws which is performed in excess of the

established length of work shall not be considered overtime work.

A list of the duties and professions of such persons shall be

specified in collective agreements and the rules of internal

procedure.

Employers shall have the right to organise obligatory

overtime work and work on days off for employees (with the

exception of employees enumerated in the third part of Article

45, and in Articles 61 and 63) when:

1) the work is indispensable for national security and it is

necessary for the prevention of calamities and hazards;

2) the work is indispensable for society in order to

eliminate accidental or unexpected conditions resulting from

accidents, calamities, etc.;

3) it is necessary to complete work which is already in

progress and which, for unplanned or accidental obstacles

connected with technical production conditions, was not possible

to complete during normal work hours, if materials or equipment

would be ruined if said work was to be interrupted;

4) the work concerns the rebuilding or repair of mechanisms

or equipment, if the breakdown of said mechanisms or equipment

would prevent the majority of employees from working;

5) no one comes to relieve said employee (employers shall be

required to relieve employees who are working a second

consecutive shift before half of the second shift is over); and

6) loading, unloading, or transportation work connected

therewith is to be carried out, to prevent the accumulation of

freight and demurrage of means of transport.

In cases not enumerated in the third part of this Article,

employers may organise overtime work in accordance with the

procedure established in collective agreements and upon receiving

the written consent of the employee.

Work which employees perform after completion of the work

day (shift) on their own initiative and upon agreement with the

employer shall not be considered overtime work; however, the

length of daily and weekly rest time established in Articles 53

and 54 of this Law must be guaranteed.

It shall be prohibited to work overtime under extremely

harmful working conditions (Article 67), barring the case

indicated in item 5 in the third part of this Article.

Article 49. Overtime Work Restrictions

If an employee works for two consecutive days, his or her

overtime work may not exceed 4 hours; a single employee may not

work more than 120 overtime hours per year. Employees shall be

required to calculate the entire number of overtime hours that

each employee has worked.

Article 50. Time Off

The following types of breaks shall be established to

renew the functional capacity and health of employees:

breaks to rest and eat;

additional and special breaks to rest;

daily time off; and

weekly time off.

In addition to established time off, holidays shall be

granted in the procedure established by laws of the Republic of

Lithuania in order to renew the functional capacity and health of

employees.

Article 51. Breaks to Rest and Eat

Employees shall be given a break to rest and eat of at least

half an hour and not more than two hours, during which they shall

have the right to leave the workplace and use the time at their

own discretion. Breaks to rest and eat shall be given no later

than after 4 work hours.

At jobs where it is not possible to leave the workplace and

take a break due to production conditions, employees shall be

provided with the opportunity to eat during work. The list of

such jobs and the procedure for taking meals shall be established

in employment and collective contracts.

The beginning and end of breaks to rest and eat, as well as

the length and procedure for granting thereof on the eve of days

off and national holidays shall be established in collective

agreements, collective contracts, and employment contracts.

Breaks to rest and eat shall not be included in the work

time.

Article 52. Additional and Special Breaks

Taking working conditions into consideration, employees

shall be given additional breaks to rest during work time.

Employees who work outdoors or in non-heated premises (when

the temperature outside is lower than -10 degrees centigrade), as

well as in other cases provided in standard acts of labour

protection, must be given special breaks. Rest rooms shall be

equipped for this purpose. Special breaks shall be included into

work time and must be at least 10 minutes long.

The number and length of additional and special breaks to

rest, as well as the rest place, shall be established in

collective agreements and employment contracts, taking the

concrete working conditions into consideration.

Rest and special breaks during work time (shifts) shall be

regulated, taking working conditions into consideration, by

standard rest regime regulations which shall be approved by the

Minister of Social Security. Additional rest breaks may be

provided in collective contracts and collective agreements.

Article 53. Daily Rest

It shall be prohibited to assign an employee two consecutive

shifts.

Employees must be given at least 10 consecutive hours of

rest for each 24 hour period. The length of rest for persons

under 18 years of age shall be established on the basis of

Article 60 of this Law.

Article 54. Weekly Time Off

The length of the uninterrupted rest per week must be at

least 36 hours.

In the case of a five-day work week, the employee shall be

given two days off per week, and in the case of a six-day work

week - one day off (the third part of Article 42).

The general day off shall be Sunday; in enterprises where

all employees are non-Christians, any day of the week may be

assigned as the general day off, with the exception of the cases

provided in Articles 55 and 56.

In the case that the work week consists of less than 5 days,

other days off shall be provided in employment and collective

contracts.

Article 55. Days Off in Service Rendering Enterprises

Towns and regional councils shall establish days off for

enterprises which cannot interrupt work on Sundays and holidays because of the necessity to render services to the population (shops, transport enterprises, theatres, museums, etc.).

Article 56. Days Off in Enterprises which Work Without Interruption and which Keep Summary Records of Work Time

In enterprises whose work cannot be stopped due to

production or technical conditions, as well as in enterprises

which provide uninterrupted services to the population, days off

shall be given on various days of the week to each group of

employees in succession according to the work (shift) schedules,

provided that said enterprises keep summary record of work time.

Article 57. Peculiarities of the Regulation of Work and Rest Time

Taking into consideration the seasons of the year, seasonal

prevalence of jobs, and other conditions, work and rest time in

transport, communication, agriculture enterprises, as well as in

sea and river fleet may differ from the norms established by this

Law. Peculiarities of work and rest time for separate branches of

the economy shall be established by the Government of the

Republic of Lithuania.

CHAPTER 6. WORK OF MINORS, WOMEN AND PERSONS

WITH LIMITED FUNCTIONAL CAPACITY

SUB-CHAPTER 1. WORK OF MINORS

Article 58. Regulation of Labour Protection for Persons under Eighteen Years of Age

According to this Law and other standard acts of labour

protection, work privileges shall be applied to minors - persons

from 14 to 18 years of age.

Upon the written consent of one of the parents or guardians

of a child as well as with the permission of a doctor, persons

under 14 years of age may provide communication services and may

participate in cultural and art festivities and other activities

which do not have a negative influence on said child's health,

morals, or studies.

The Government of the Republic of Lithuania shall establish

the employment procedure, jobs, and rest time for persons under

14 years of age, as well as exceptional conditions under which

said persons may perform a certain job.

Employers must make up a nominal list of employees who are

under 18 years of age and must guarantee their work safety.

Article 59. Work Privileges for Persons under 18 Years of Age

It shall be prohibited to appoint persons under 18 years of

age to perform hazardous work in harmful or very harmful working

conditions (Article 67).

The Government of the Republic of Lithuania shall establish

the jobs which persons under 18 years of age shall be prohibited

from carrying out, as well as hazardous and harmful factors.

The conditions and procedure for vocational training of

persons under 18 years of age for established jobs (the second

part of this Article) shall be determined by the Government of

the Republic of Lithuania.

The Government of the Republic of the Lithuania shall

establish the jobs and working conditions under which persons

between 14 and 16 years of age may be employed.

Article 60. Rest Time for Persons under Eighteen Years of Age

Daily uninterrupted rest time for persons under 16 years of

age must be at least 14 hours, and at least 12 hours for persons

from 16 to 18 years of age; this rest time must be between the

hours of 8 p.m. and 8 a.m.

Persons under 18 years of age must be given at least 2 days

off per week.

Article 61. Prohibition to Appoint Persons under Eighteen Years of Age to Work Night and Overtime Work

It shall be prohibited to assign persons under 18 years of

age to work at night, on days off, on holidays, and overtime

work.

SUB-CHAPTER 2. WORK OF WOMEN AND PERSONS WITH LIMITED

FUNCTIONAL CAPACITY

Article 62. Protection of Maternity

Women shall have the right to chose to work full- or part-

time, and to do work which is harmful to neither their nor their

children's health.

By this Law, the State shall guarantee women, including

pregnant women and women who are raising children, work

privileges.

Article 63. Work Privileges for Pregnant Women and Women who Have Young Children

Pregnant women who have presented medical conclusions must

be given reduced work norms or must be transferred to another job

which is not harmful to their health and where the average salary

is not less than at the previous job. If it is not possible to

transfer a pregnant woman to a job which is not harmful to her

health, as well as while solving the issue of a pregnant woman's

transference to an easier job or a job which is not harmful to

her health, said woman shall be relieved from work while keeping

the average salary for the days concerned.

It shall be prohibited to appoint pregnant women and women

who are raising children under three years of age to overtime

works and night work, although it shall be permitted to appoint

said women to work on days off and holidays and to send them on

business trips if their consent thereon has been given.

If a woman cannot work because she has a child under one and

a half years of age, she may request to be transferred to another

job while keeping the average salary from her previous job until

the child reaches one and a half years of age. Furthermore, in

addition to the general break to rest and eat, said women shall

be given a break of at least half an hour at least every three

hours in order to feed their children. If a woman so desires,

breaks to feed her child may be joined or added to the break to

rest and eat, or may be moved to the end of the work day (shift),

correspondingly shortening the work day (shift). These breaks

shall be paid for at the rate of average salary.

Women who have children between the ages of 3 and 14, as

well as women who have disabled children under the age of 16, may

not be assigned to work overtime or be sent on business trips

without their agreement thereto.

Women who are raining children under 14 years of age shall

have priority in choosing their work shift if there is such a

possibility.

Article 64. Jobs Prohibited for Women

It shall be prohibited to assign women under the age of 40

to jobs which are potentially hazardous to maternal functions.

Prohibited jobs as well as factors of the work environment

which are harmful or hazardous to the health of women, including

those under 40 years of age, and pregnant women shall be

established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 65. Work of Persons with Limited Functional Capacity

Labour protection of persons with limited functional capacity

shall be guaranteed by this and other laws, as well as by

standard acts of labour protection.

Work and rest privileges for men over the age of 60 and

women over the age of 55 shall be established by the parties

(employer and employee) by drawing up (extending) a labour

contract or in collective agreements and contracts.

CHAPTER 7. EVALUATION AND COMPENSATION OF LABOUR PROTECTION

Article 66. Evaluation of Labour Protection

Labour protection shall be evaluated according to how the

work conditions (the amount of harmful and hazardous factors)

correspond with the requirements of standard acts of labour

protection.

Article 67. Classification and Characteristics of Work Conditions

Work conditions shall be classified as such:

1) optimal work conditions - a work environment which does

not have hazardous or harmful factors which have a negative

effect on the working-capacity, health, or general welfare of the

employees, or which pose a hazard to their lives;

2) normal work conditions - when the factors of a work

environment and the amount of their sum total correspond to the

requirements (hygienic norms) of standard acts of labour

protection, and do not normally cause health disorders

(occupational diseases);

3) hazardous work conditions (hazardous work) - the work

having a degree of risk, i.e. when the accidental influence of a

hazardous, harmful factor connected with the nature of the work

or the influence of a hazardous factor which has changed

abnormally is possible;

4) harmful work conditions - when one or more factors of the

work environment or their totality does not always exceed the requirements (hygienic norms) of standard acts of labour protection but is harmful to health and, in certain cases, may cause occupational diseases and the means of individual protection are used under such conditions;

5) very harmful work conditions - when one or more factors

of the work environment or their totality continually exceed the requirements (hygienic norms) of standard acts of labour protection and there is a danger of contracting an occupational disease. The length of shifts (work) under such conditions shall be limited in observance of Item 3 of Article 41 and Article 59 of this Law and, in some cases, may not exceed 7 hours and shall be established in standard acts of labour protection. While working under such conditions, means of individual protection shall be used; it shall be prohibited to work if the harmful factors of the work environment exceed the amount of very harmful work conditions;

6) extreme work conditions - when the amount of harmful or

hazardous factors of the work environment suddenly increases due

to technological or work (production) process disorders,

accidents, or unpredictable natural or other phenomena and, as a

result, sudden poisoning or physical injury is possible. The

activities of people under such conditions shall be regulated by

the Government of the Republic of Lithuania and shall be

confirmed by statutes of prevention and liquidation of industrial

accidents as well as by other standard acts.

The indicators of the harmfulness (weight) and hazard of a

work environment shall be established by standard acts of labour

protection and labour hygiene.

Article 68. Evaluation of Working Conditions

Employers shall be required to guarantee the evaluation of

working conditions in workplaces. A certificate concerning the

state of the working conditions must be filled out for each workplace (identical workplaces), which shall provide for the measures to improve working conditions.

Working conditions shall be evaluated by the Government of the

Republic of Lithuania according to the established procedure.

Violation of the established procedure for the evaluation of

working conditions shall incur the employees with liability as

established in the laws of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 69. Compensations and Guarantees for Employees Working Under Harmful and Hazardous Work Conditions

Work under harmful and very harmful work conditions shall be

compensated for according to the procedure established in the Law

of the Republic of Lithuania on Work Compensation.

In observance of Articles 41 and 67 of this Law, the length

of the workday (shift) shall be shortened for employees who work

under very harmful work conditions, and work time under such

conditions through all of the work activities should not exceed

the length of work established in standard acts. If an employee

who has worked the established length of work under very harmful

conditions wished to re-qualify and obtain a new profession

(speciality), the employer shall pay for re-qualification

expenditures.

The procedure for establishing the amount of surcharges for

work under harmful, very harmful, and hazardous conditions shall

be confirmed by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Employees who work under harmful conditions shall, taking

the amount of harmful factors into consideration, be given

medical adaptogenic preparations and food products which increase

a person's resistance to the influence of harmful factors, which

shall be paid for by the enterprise.

The Minister of Health Protection shall establish a list of

harmful factors, as well as the conditions in the presence of

which medical adaptive preparations and food products which

increase a person's resistance to the influence of harmful

factors may be given.

A surcharge of at least 30% of the minimal hourly salary

(monthly salary) established by the state shall be paid for work

under hazardous conditions (hazardous work). The list of

hazardous jobs (productions) shall be confirmed by the Government

of the Republic of Lithuania.

Employees who work under hazardous or very harmful

conditions may be given additional holidays, the length and

procedure for issue of which shall be established in collective

agreements, collective contracts, or employment contracts.

Article 70. Examination of Labour Protection

Examination of labour protection shall be carried out in the

planning of enterprises, departments, other production

subdivisions, and new technologies, as well as upon commencing

the exploitation of said objects and the production of new means

of labour (Article 21), in changing the procedure for providing

compensations which are guaranteed by the state, in resolving

arguments between employers and employees concerning

compensations or the truthfulness of data for the evaluation of

work conditions in a workplace, and upon the demand of the

parties of a collective contract.

The procedure for the examination of labour protection shall

be established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

CHAPTER 8. ACCIDENTS, OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES

Article 71. Classification of Accidents, Occupational Diseases

This Law shall establish the classification of accidents

(paragraph 13 of Article 1) and occupational diseases (paragraph

12 of Article 1). Accidents shall be classified as follows:

1) according to their consequences - minor, serious, fatal;

2) according to the number of the employees who have

suffered from the accident - single, group; and

3) according to the relation with work - related with a job

(also, on the way to or back from a job), not related with a job.

In accordance with the symptoms and time of manifestation of

the disease, occupational diseases shall be classified as

follows:

1) sudden occupational illness (poisoning) - a sudden health

disorder caused by a short-term (one-time or during one working

day) factor(s) of the work environment;

2) chronic occupational illness (poisoning) - a health

disorder caused by a factor(s) of the work environment over a

certain period of work time.

Article 72. Investigation of Accidents, Occupational Diseases

A uniform procedure for the investigation of accidents and

occupational diseases shall be obligatory for all enterprises.

All accidents and occupational diseases must be researched,

and the results thereof must be written in statements of an

established form and registered in the journal of an established

form.

Minor accidents shall be investigated by a bilateral

commission made up by the employer of representatives authorised

by the employees and assigned by the employers.

Serious accidents and accidents due to which the victim

dies, shall be investigated by a tripartite commission made up of

the state labour inspector (the commission chairperson), a labour

union representative or a person authorised by the employees (in

the event that there are no labour unions in the enterprise or if

the victim was not a member of a labour union), and a

representative assigned by the employers.

The cause of occupational diseases shall be investigated by

labour medicine doctors, in conjunction with the state labour

inspector and representatives of the employer and the employees.

Sudden occupational diseases (poisoning) must be

investigated within 24 hours.

Sudden occupational diseases (poisoning) which have appeared

together with an accident must be investigated at the same time.

Organisations representing the interests of employers or

employees may participate in the investigation of accidents and

occupational diseases; if necessary, experts may be called.

Occupational diseases (poisoning) and accidents due to which

or more people have died shall be investigated by a commission

made up by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

The classification symptoms of serious accidents and the

lists of occupational diseases shall be approved by the

Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

The regulations for the investigation and registration of

accidents and occupational diseases shall be approved by the

Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Expenses for the investigation and examination of accidents

and occupational diseases shall be paid for from the employer's

funds.

Article 73. Protection of Statements of the Investigation of Accidents, Occupational Diseases

Statements concerning the investigation of accidents and occupational diseases shall be delivered to: the concerned employee or a person representing his interests, the employer, the State Labour Inspectorate. In the event of serious or fatal accidents or when there are grounds for prosecution, the State Labour Inspectorate shall transmit the material relative to the accident to the public prosecutor’s office.

The material and statements of investigations of accidents and occupational diseases shall be protected in the enterprise in which the accident occurred or the occupational disease was registered (minor accidents -- 45 years, serious and fatal accidents and occupational diseases -- 75 years). If an enterprise is liquidated, statements and material of investigations shall be transferred to the enterprise which is the successor to the rights.

Statements of investigations of serious and fatal accidents, and occupational diseases shall be kept in the State Labour Inspectorate for 15 years, and after that shall be transferred into the state safekeeping.

Article 74. Reports about Accidents, Occupational Diseases

Persons who suffer injury as a result of an accident or

sudden occupational disease, as well as persons who have seen

such an occurrence or the results thereof, must immediately

report this (provided that they can) to the labour protection

service of the enterprise, the direct head of labour (or person

authorised thereby), and the employer.

In the event of accidents, occupational diseases due to which a person dies, as well as serious accidents, the employer (person authorised by the employer) must, within one hour of being informed about the event, notify the city public prosecutor’s office and the State Labour Inspectorate, and in the event of sudden occupational diseases (poisoning) - must notify the State Public Health Care Institution and the State Labour Inspectorate. The doctor who suspects a chronic occupational disease shall, not later that within three days, report this fact in writing to the State Public Health Care Institution and the State Labour Inspectorate.

CHAPTER 9. ECONOMIC MEANS AND LIABILITY

SUB-CHAPTER 1. ECONOMIC MEANS

Article 75. Employee Insurance

Employees shall be required to insure their employees

against accidents and occupational diseases according to the Law

of the Republic of Lithuania on Labour Accident Insurance.

Additional employee insurance against accidents and

occupational diseases may be provided for in collective contracts

and collective agreements.

Article 76. Dependence of Employee Insurance Against Accidents and Occupational Diseases Upon the State of Labour Protection

Taking accidents, occupational diseases, and work conditions

into account, differentiated dues for insurance against accidents

and occupational diseases shall be established for enterprises.

The amount of dues for enterprises for employee insurance

against accidents and occupational diseases as well as the

procedure for payment thereof shall be established, according to

the state of labour protection, by the Government of the Republic

of Lithuania in observance of the Law of the Republic of

Lithuania on Labour Accident Insurance.

SUB-CHAPTER 2. LIABILITY

Article 77. Liability of Employers and Employees

If an accident occurs or could have occurred, an employee

contracts an occupational disease, or the work of an enterprise

is disturbed due to a violation of this Law or other standard

act, the employers or persons authorised thereby who, by their

actions or lack of action, have violated the requirements of the

standard acts of labour protection or have failed to create

conditions for the observance of such requirements, as well as

employees who knowingly work in conditions which violate the

requirements of labour protection, shall be held disciplinarily,

materially, administratively, and criminally liable as

established by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania.

Disciplinary, material, administrative, and criminal

liability as established by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania

shall be applied to employers or employees who prevent inspectors

of the State Labour Inspectorate from carrying out their duties.

Article 78. Health Compensation for Employees

Compensations for the inability to work, treatment, care,

prosthetics, and other expenses to be paid to persons who have,

due to a labour accident, occupational disease, or other work-

related injury, lost their ability to work, as well as

compensations to be paid to the family and other persons in the

case of death, shall be regulated by the Law of the Republic of

Lithuania on Labour Accident Insurance and other laws.

If a person who has undergone injury at work was not insured

against labour accidents, compensation for the inability to work,

as well as other expenses related to medical assistance and

treatment and the social and professional rehabilitation of said

employee shall be paid for by the employer. The sum of

compensation of damages and the payment of the above mentioned

expenses must not be less than the amount provided for in the Law

of the Republic of Lithuania on Labour Accident Insurance.

Article 79. Consequences of the Violation of the Requirements of Labour Protection Statutory Acts

If a fatal labour accident takes place at work due to the violation of the requirements of statutory acts of labour protection, the State labour Inspectorate shall establish the fact of such violation when investigating the said accident at work.

The enterprise wherein a fatal labour accident took place due to the violation of labour protection statutory acts, shall pay the family of the deceased a death benefit of at least 100 average wages in the national economy. When computing this compensation, average wages in the national economy shall be of the amount announced by the Department of Statistics at the Government of the Republic of Lithuania for the month preceding the month when a fatal accident took place at work. Such death benefit shall be paid in equal parts to each member of the deceased employee. The following persons shall be considered the members of the deceased : the wife or husband, children (adopted children), parents (foster parents), a child (children) who were born after his death. The procedure of paying the death benefit shall be established in the Regulations, approved by the Government, concerning allocation of the death benefit in the event of the employee’s death due to a fatal accident at work.

Providing that the fatal labour accident took place after the State Labour Inspectorate had established the violation of the requirements of statutory acts of labour protection, and the employer did not eliminate it within the time limit set by the state labour inspector, as a result of which the fatal accident at work occurred, the enterprise shall transfer the sum of money equal to 50 average wages in the national economy to the account of the Labour Protection Fund. When computing this compensation, average wages in the national economy shall be of the amount announced by the Department of Statistics at the Government of the Republic of Lithuania for the month preceding the month when the violation of the requirements stipulated in statutory acts of labour protection was established.

Disputes related to the application of this Article shall be resolved by the court.

Article 80. Administrative Penalties for Violations of Standard Acts of Labour Protection

For the violation of standard acts of labour protection, the

State Labour Inspectorate shall assign penalties established in

the laws of the Republic of Lithuania to the employers or

employees who have violated the standard acts.

The penalties established in this Article shall be paid into

the State budget.

CHAPTER 10. FINAL REGULATIONS

Article 81. Control of the Organisation of Labour Protection

The observance of the requirements of labour protection in enterprises, institutions and organisations shall be controlled by the State Labour Inspectorate at the Ministry of Social Security and Labour. The functions, rights and liability of the State Labour Inspectorate shall be set forth in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on the State Labour Inspectorate.

Article 82. Procedure for the Investigation of Disagreements

Disagreements concerning the application and violation of

standard acts of labour protection shall be investigated:

- according to the procedure established for labour

disagreements if the disagreement is between employees and

employers;

- in court or in arbitration, according to the procedure

established by laws, if the disagreement is between enterprises.

Collective labour disagreements (conflicts) concerning labour

protection shall be resolved according to the procedure

established by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on the

Regulation of Collective Disagreements.

Article 83. Registration and Reporting of Labour Protection

Accidents, occupational diseases, and work places in which

dangerous factors of the work environment do not conform with

hygienic norms or in which potentially dangerous technical

equipment is used (Article 18) labour means which do not conform

with the requirements of standard acts of labour protection, and

dangerous jobs shall be registered in enterprises.

The procedure and indicators of statistical reporting of

labour protection shall be established by the Government of the

Republic of Lithuania.

Article 84. International Co-operation

International co-operation on issues of labour protection

shall be based on the Constitution of the International Labour

Organisation, the August 10, 1944 Declaration of the General

Conference of the International Labour Organisation, the

conventions of the International Labour Organisation, and other

international documents.

Article 85. Validity of International Documents in the Republic of Lithuania

According to the Constitution of the International Labour

Organisation, the ratified conventions of the International Labour

Organisation and the documents of other international

organisations on issues of labour protection are valid in the

Republic of Lithuania.

The recommendations of the International Labour Organisation

shall be taken into consideration in the preparation of the

standard acts of labour protection of the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 86. Validity of International Treaties

Only those international treaties in which the established

requirements of labour protection do not reduce the employees'

guarantees of labour protection as established in this Law and

other standard acts of labour protection of the Republic of

Lithuania shall be valid in the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 87. Entry into Force of the Law

Articles 7 and 8, part 2 of Article 10, part 3 of Article 11, parts 6, 7, and 8 of Article 14, part 8 of Article 15, part 2 of Article 16, part 4 of Article 17, part 2 of Article 18, part 3 of Article 20, parts 4 and 6 of Article 24, Article 26, item 1 of Article 28, Article 29, part 4 of Article 30, part 6 of Article 31, item 3 of part 1 and part 2 of Article 41, part 8 of Article 42, Article 46, part 4 of Article 52, Article 57, part 3 of Article 58, parts 2, 3 and 4 of Article 59, Article 64, items 5 and 6 of part 1 and part 2 of Article 67, part 2 of Article 68, parts 3, 5 and 6 of Article 69, part 2 of Article 70, parts 10 and 11 of Article 72, part 1 of Article 75, Articles 76, 79 and 82, part 2 of Article 84 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Labour Protection shall come into force upon the adoption of an appropriate law by the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania or upon the approval, according to the established procedure, of appropriate statutory acts of labour protection by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. Until the approval of statutory acts specified in the said articles, the effective statutory acts of labour protection shall be observed.

I promulgate this Law enacted by the Seimas of the Republic

of Lithuania.

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC	ALGIRDAS BRAZAUSKAS