Labor For a Penny: Parliament Adopted New Amendments

Capital won another victory.

On Thursday, the Parliament of Latvia approved the amendments to the Labor Law, allowing the overtime to be paid at the rate of 50% instead of 100% in the event that a corresponding general agreement has been adopted in the industry. Earlier, Latvian President Raymond Veyonis refused to proclaim amendments and returned them for further revision.

The amendments state that if an industry adopts a general agreement and the minimum wage in it is at least 50% bigger than that established by the state, then the employer can pay overtime not in 100% volume, but in 50%.

If the workers and other hired employees of Latvia will continue to ignore calls for unification and trade union struggle for their interests, the hour is not far when overtime will be paid as simple hours. And if we consider that very often overtime work, contrary to the law, is mandatory at enterprises, then the working day will actually be lengthened to 12–16 hours as in tzarist autocracy.

Remember, the capital will come constantly until it is pushed back!