Government crackdown on illegal labor

RIGA - It is estimated that there are around 300,000 illegal workers working in Latvia today. This doesn’t refer to illegal immigrants, but to those in the country that receive either part or all of their salaries ‘under the table,’ or “in envelopes,” declared Welfare Minister Uldis Augulis (Union of the Greens and Farmers).
The total number of employed is approximately one million. This practice of tax evasion, however, is very serious, given that the taxes are not being paid into the budget, says the minister. According to Augulis, the situation will not improve in the near future, either, and could only deteriorate.

The government plans to reduce the official unregistered employment level by 2013 within the framework of a plan endorsed on Jan. 18. Planned measures include the withholding of government contracts from firms shown to employ unregistered workers, as well as increased information sharing between the State Revenue Service and the State Labor Inspectorate.
Plans are also in place for amendments to the Labor Code and consultations with employers’ associations and trade unions from those areas with a high level of unregistered employment, looking at how to resolve the issue.

Inspections will be made of firms operating in areas with high incidents of illegal employment, as well as firms that have shown an increase and decrease in the number of workers, before and after an SLI inspection, though with no change in the company’s turnover.

Penalties for illegal employment are also set to be reviewed.