FES BRIEFING LATVIA Trade Union Monitor April 2022 POLITICAL, ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL FRAMEWORK POLITICAL CONTEXT During the Covid-19 pandemic several crucial amendments of the Labour Code were adopted, as well as Covid-19 re­strictions and related norms, reflecting the»new normal« in Latvia. For example, an employer must give employees the opportu­nity to work remotely if the nature of their work allows it. Re­mote work is work that is carried out continuously or regu­larly outside the workplace, including work that is carried out using information and communication technologies(ICT). Work that by its nature involves regular travel is not consid­ered remote work for the purposes of this Act. If the work has to be carried out at the workplace, the employer is obliged to take measures to contain the spread of Covid-19 and to provide the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE). The employer is also obliged to inform employees about the measures taken in the workplace to contain the spread of Covid-19. UNI Europa’s»Key Union Principles for Ensuring Workers’ Rights in Remote Work« are also relevant to union work. The Covid-19 law has also played an important role in re­solving disputes between workers and employers during the pandemic. The aim of the law is to create a legal order that provides appropriate measures to ensure the rights and obligations of private individuals consistent with public health and safety and the efficient functioning of state and local administration. According to the Covid-19 law, the rights of private individuals may only be restricted if public security risks related to the spread of Covid-19 cannot be effectively eliminated by applying the provisions available under the existing general legal procedures. However, as soon as there is no longer an objective need to maintain measures restricting the rights of individuals, these restric­tions must be lifted(Article 3 of the Covid-19 Law). Chapter II of the Covid-19 law sets out the rules for the working en­vironment. The Covid-19 law makes vaccination»mandatory« for peo­ple working in the public sector. According to Section 7/3 of the Covid-19 Law, the employer determines to which posts or categories of workers(public servants) the requirements and conditions of the laws and regulations regarding the need for vaccination or a certificate of recovery apply, and informs the worker(public servant) about that. They are obliged to inform the employer whether they have been vaccinated or have a certificate of recovery and to present the said certificate to the employer in accordance with the procedures laid down there. While this norm has been chal­lenged by some populist political parties, it is still in force and continues to help fight Covid-19(including the Delta and Omicron variants). The Covid-19 law also stipulates that an employee can be fired if he/she is not vaccinated or does not have a certificate of recovery required for his/her(office, service) job. A dis­missal is considered justified if the employer is unable to transfer the employee to another suitable place of work(of­fice) or to ensure the fulfillment of his/her work duties(office, service) remotely as provided for in laws and regulations or for other objective reasons. The employer has the right to suspend or furlough the employee(civil servant) from work (office, duty) pending the submission of a vaccination or re­covery certificate if the employee is at fault for the illness. The employer is also not obliged to pay the employee for the period of suspension or vacation. With the exception of pub­lic administration, the employer has the right to withhold wages for the duration of the suspension. It is forbidden to suspend employees from work(office, service) for a period of more than three months. Other important changes to the Labor Code were passed on 9 June 2021. For instance, Article 61 provides for administra­tive penalties for non-compliance with the provisions of the general collective agreement on minimum wages. The monthly minimum wage within normal working hours, the minimum hourly rates and the procedures for reviewing the monthly minimum wage are determined by the Cabinet of Ministers and general collective agreements. The monthly 1