Minimum wage in Lithuania is 700 Lt (200 EUR) and the fifth of the population earns this amount of money in a month. Around 41 % of the population gets the part of the payment “under the table”, in other words unofficially. The middle wage in the country is 1 370 Lt (400 EUR). The members of the parliament, which are making 3 000 Lt (870 EUR), gets almost 5500 Lt (1600 EUR) a month for office supplies, and do not have to explain where they spend the money.

 

According to survey of Department of Statistics to the Government of the Republic of Lithuania, during 2006 food prices in Lithuania increased by 10,5 % calculating from August. Public utilities, transport are also getting more expensive.

 

Several trade unions and NGO‘s tried to persuade the government that their activities are insufficient and demanded to take measures, which would stop the growth of the prices in the country. They believe that such increase of prices is determined not only by the free market, but also by the unwillingness of the government to manage with the "big businessmen". Therefore, they organized the demonstration on Saturday.

 

“More than 4000 people took part in the peaceful protest and it is not too few, knowing how passive the people are. They are frustrated and convinced that it is not giving any results”, - claims the head of the Lithuanian Trade Union „Solidarumas“ Aldona Jašinskienė. However, the demonstration is the form of their expression.

 

The participants delivered the symbolic envelope with the requirements, which they have already presented before, to the head of the representative of the Lithuanian government. The envelope is the symbol of the bribe, or the „under table“payment in Lithuania for quite a while.

 

The trade unions are going to wait for the response from the government until the end of the December and then they wish to understand how the government will try to tackle the economic situation.

 

A year ago, the trade union protested against the proposal to create the ceiling of social insurance, presented by the government. It denoted that social insurance tax rate should not be applied for the part of the salary, which exceeds the level of 4 average wages. For the individual, who earns more than that, the tax would be computed only below the mentioned ceiling. According to the trade union, in this case the State Social Insurance fund board of Lithuania would feel the lack of the money already in few years. The trade unions are also worried with the reconsideration of this offer in the government.

 

The picture as seen by members of Parliament is also opposite to the one of workers. Last year they barely passed the law, which was indented to guarantee the life annuity for the former parliament members, not depending on their age. The members of Parliament are elected for the term of 4 years. The chair of the „Solidarumas“ thinks that this term should be legitimized with fixed-term employment agreements. Moreover, she is convinced that each member of the Parliament is trying to get the 19 000 Lt of severance payment in the end of his period.

 

Demonstration in Vilnius is the reflection of the events, which took place in France and Latvia. Furthermore, the message from the representative of The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) Janina Malinovska arrived. She reported that members of The Estonian Transport & Road Workers' Trade Union organized the event next to the Lithuanian embassy in Tallinn and expressed their support.

 

According to A. Jašinskienė the fact that Lithuanian employees woke up and are trying to grasp the situation is so delightful. "The trade unions are the only organizations, where they can defend their interests. Since soviet times the conviction is dominating, implying that trade union was not designed to defend the rights, rather to give a flat, or a coupon for refrigerator. Only now this approach is changing."

 

She is looking to the future with optimism and wants us to trust Lithuanian trade unions are consolidating and shifting from conflicts to collaboration. If they would work together, they would be able to show more courage when claiming employee rights.

 

Indrė Kumpikevičiūtė


Translated by Dionizas Bajarūnas


Photos made by Jovita Meškauskienė