What is an individual labour dispute?
Individual labour disputes are considered to be a conflict between an employer and an employee over unpaid wages, uncompensated material damage, disciplinary penalties, not provided holidays, and so on. From July 1^st of 2017, after new Labor Code came into force, the Labor Dispute Commettee also deals with disputes concerning the dismissal of a worker, legality of removal from work, and non-pecuniary damage, which was previously settled by the courts.

What is a labour dispute committee?
Labour dispute committee is a mandatory pre-trial dispute settlement body specialized in individual labour disputes. Lithuania has 19 labour dispute committees: 6 in Vilnius, 4 in Kaunas, 3 in Klaipeda, 2 in Siauliai and Panevezys, 1 in Alytus and Telsiai. Utena, Marijampole, Taurage Counties are represented by (respectively) Panevezys, Alytus and Telsiai labour dispute committees. The committees are set up at the National Labour Inspectorate (NLI) territorial divisions.

Who can refer to the labour dispute committee?
Both employees and employers can refer to the labour dispute committees if their rights are violated.

What documents are required to submit when requesting to examine the individual labour dispute?
The most important is to present an application of established form with a detailed description of the situation. Other documents should be provided as well: contracts of employment, payrolls and so on.

How are labour disputes investigated and decisions made?
Upon receiving an application from the employee or the employer, the committee will meet him and, if necessary, will question employees of the company, gather other relevant information. On the appointed day, both parties – the employer and the employee – of the dispute will be invited to the committee meeting. The aim of the meeting is to reconcile the two parties. If this fails, the committee shall vote for the decision. All the members’ votes have equal rights, i.e. none of them has a casting vote. The committee may take the decision in the absence of one of the parties at the meeting.

How long does it take for the committee to resolve an individual labour dispute?
The committee must resolve the labour dispute within one month from receiving the appeal. In some cases, this time limit may be extended to one more month.

Do I have to pay for labour dispute resolution?
No, this administrative service of the state is free.

How are the interests of employees and employers represented?
In order to resolve labour disputes efficiently and transparently, there are both employers’ and employees’ (trade union) representatives in the committee. They are appointed by rotation from the list created by the Tripartite Council Secretariat and approved by the Republic of Lithuania chief state labour inspector.

What if the labour dispute committee’s decision is unsatisfactory?
Decisions made by the Labour Dispute Committee are binding for the parties and enforceable under the regulations of civil procedure. However, if the employee or the employer disagrees with the labour dispute committee decision, they can appeal to the court, where the labour dispute will be reviewed.

Is the court guided by the decision of labour dispute committee when investigating an individual dispute?
No one can influence the courts’ decisions, the court case will be considered on its merits. However, the judge will be able to rely on the material on the subject of the dispute and its resolution collected by the labour dispute committee.

The contact details of labour dispute boards (Lith. DGK):

Vilniaus I DGK – (8 5) 210 4733

Vilniaus II DGK – (8 5) 2104746

Vilniaus III DGK – (8 5) 210 4731

Vilniaus IV DGK – (8 5) 233 7839

Vilniaus V DGK – (8 5) 210 4742

Kauno I DGK – (8 37) 328 166

Kauno II DGK – (8 37) 328 171

Kauno III DGK – (8 37) 328 184

Klaipėdos I DGK – (8 46) 495 545

Klaipėdos II DGK – (8 46) 494 759

Šiaulių DGK – (8 41) 523 702

Panevėžio DGK – (8 45) 433 615

Alytaus DGK – (8 315) 75 320

Telšių DGK – (8 444) 53 225