The ruling coalition of Lithuania plans to introduce a new rule: if an employee resigns voluntarily without valid reasons, the payment of unemployment benefits will be postponed for one month. The goal is to reduce the motivation to 'take a break' and then soon return to the labor market, writes Otkrito.lv.
However, the rule will not apply to those who resign by mutual agreement, at the initiative of the employer, or for valid reasons — for example, in cases of unpaid wages, illness, the need to care for a relative, or retirement.
The idea is supported by the new Minister of Social Protection and Labor, Jūratė Šiugždinienė. According to the minister, the idea came from business associations, which suggested postponing the payment for as long as three months, but the politicians settled on one.
"The main goal is to curb the situation where people resign in the summer to 'pick mushrooms' or to work a little elsewhere. Employers ask them not to leave, but people still resign," said Minister Jūratė Šiugždinienė.
She noted that such practices exist in other countries, where payments are delayed for several months. This is a pure fact. This order also exists in Latvia.
According to Latvian laws, if the employment relationship is terminated at the initiative of the employer or by mutual agreement, unemployment benefits are assigned from the day the application for unemployment benefits is received. Payment of benefits begins in the following month.
If the employment relationship is terminated voluntarily or due to a violation, unemployment benefits are assigned from the day the application is submitted, but not earlier than two months after receiving unemployed status. This means that unemployment benefits will be assigned after two months, and the first payment can only be received in the third month.
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