Labour law violations and psychological harassment at work

More than 43,000 violations of labour law were identified in Lithuanian enterprises during the first quarter of 2004. The most common infringements concerned working time and delayed payment of wages. Moreover, unofficial employment seems to be on the increase. These are among the findings of research based on State Labour Inspectorate data as well as the results of a questionnaire survey of regional inspectors, trade union/employee representatives and employers. The survey also examined the impact of psychological harassment on employees’ work, motivation and health.

In 2004, the Lithuanian Institute of Labour and Social Research (Darbo ir socialiniu tyrimu institutas, DSTI) carried out a survey on the impact of illegal or undeclared work and violations of legislation governing employment relations. It was part of the programme ‘Prevention of occupational health damage and improvement of safety at work’, approved by the Ministry of Social Security and Labour (Socialines apsaugos ir darbo ministerija, SADM).

According to the State Labour Inspectorate (Valstybine darbo inspekcija, VDI), some 43,690 violations were identified in various establishments in Lithuania during the first quarter in 2004, which represents 11% more than during the same period in 2005.

Survey objectives and methodology

The survey aimed to evaluate the impact of illegal work, violations of employment relations, threats of employer representatives or other psychological harassment on employees’ work results, safety and health. The survey included three groups of respondents:

• inspectors of regional units of the VDI;

• representatives of trade unions/employees;

• employers.

A total of 600 experts were selected for the survey. The central trade union and employer organisations as well as the VDI distributed the questionnaires; the latter delivered them personally to experts or by email. In all, responses were received from 40 inspectors of VDI regional units, 154 trade union/employee representatives and 119 employers.

Survey topics

The survey sought to identify respondents’ opinions on the following:

• violations of legislation governing employment relations;

• prevalence of illegal work or unofficial employment, defined in the Lithuanian Labour Code as the absence of an employment contract for workers who are effectively employees, or as work performed by foreign citizens and failing to comply with regulations;

• cases of psychological harassment in the workplace.

Violations of legislation governing employment relations

The survey results revealed that violations of working time and rest time were more frequent than other legal infringements in Lithuanian enterprises. This opinion was supported by 75% of the VDI inspectors, 47% of trade union/employee representatives and 42% of employers. According to these groups, the most common breaches of labour law were as follows:

• violations of working time set in employment contracts;

• delayed payment of wages;

• unpaid overtime and night work.

According to the respondents, labour laws were most often violated in construction companies (indicated by 90% of the employers and 75% of the trade union/employee representatives) and in retail trade enterprises (reported by 80% of the employers and 77% of the trade union/employee representatives).

The respondents consider that the most common reason for infringements of labour law in Lithuania is a too heavy tax burden for businesses (see Figure).

Main causes of labour law violations in Lithuania (%)

Source: DSTI, 2004

Illegal work or unofficial employment

According to the VDI, some 1,422 illegal workers were identified in Lithuania in 2003, and 3,626 were found between January and May 2004. Analysing the data by sector revealed that the largest number of unofficial workers was in the construction industry, representing 36% of all illegal workers detected. Some 21% of illegal workers were in manufacturing and 10% of these workers were found in retail and wholesale trade.

An overall analysis suggests that the most likely level of unofficial employment ranges between 10% and 20% of the total number of employed workers. However, up to now, this issue has seldom been discussed in Lithuania (LT0604019I). In January 2006, the VDI submitted draft legislative amendments to tackle the problem of illegal work (LT0602103F).

According to the survey respondents, the heavy tax burden for businesses in Lithuania is the main reason for unofficial employment. The results indicate that, in order to minimise the problem, measures should include reducing tax and creating job opportunities.

Psychological impact

The survey findings identified the following forms of psychological tactics in Lithuanian establishments:

• abuse of official positions (this answer was given by 61% of the trade union/employee representatives, 50% of the employers and 46% of VDI inspectors).

• verbal aggression – harassment, offensive language, etc (noted by 53% of the trade union/employee representatives, 41% of the employers and 33% of VDI inspectors).

The survey found that psychological harassment at work had a significant impact on working conditions, safety and the health of employees. According to the survey data, psychological harassment increased tension and anxiety, and could lead to depression. More than 60% of the employers participating in the survey reported that psychological harassment reduced working capacity, while 40% of them recognised that psychological harassment reduced motivation significantly (by 50%). Most of the VDI inspectors (72%) and trade union/employee representatives (52%) admitted that psychological harassment negatively affected the physical health of employees.

Further information

See also the topic report Violence, bullying and harassment in the workplace (TN0406TR01).

Rasa Zabarauskaite, Institute of Labour and Social Research