Employees in public administration and private sector to work remotely effective March 16

RIGA - Employees in public administration, state and municipal companies, and in the private sector will have to work remotely effective March 16, the Cabinet of Ministers decided on Friday.

The requirement will not apply to manufacturing and operations that employees cannot perform remotely.

Currently employers are required to organize employees' remote work where possible, while the new requirement stipulates that employers will have to identify employees who may come to work in person so as to ensure uninterrupted production process.

The government's decision also stipulates that, should an employer and an employee be unable to reach agreement on teleworking, the employer will have the right to unilaterally order the employee to work from home.

Enforcing the new provision will be a duty of employers.

The amendments approved today also state that heads of state and municipal institutions will have to provide employees who work in person with the relevant personal protective equipment.

Heads of state and municipal institutions will also have to ensure that there is no more than one employee per office or, in case of open-plan offices, that there is at least 15 square meters per employee.