In order to receive a long-term employment benefit, you need to have worked at one workplace for at least 5 years and be able to apply to “Sodra” within 12 months of being fired, although not everyone needs to do this.
In addition, almost 80 percent a single, double or triple average wage payment can also be inherited.
Who is eligible and when to apply?
Malgožata Kozič, advisor of the Communication Department of “Sodra”, reminds that if the employer terminates the employment contract, the employees, in addition to the severance payment from him, can still receive long-term employment benefits from “Sodra”.
The specialist stated that a person has the right to receive a long-term work allowance if:
- was dismissed at the employer’s initiative without the fault of the employee (ie according to Article 57 of the Labor Code);
- worked for the employer continuously for 5 or more years before dismissal (including cases of transfer);
- did not get a job with the same employer within 3 months of dismissal;
- was not an employee of budgetary institutions or the Bank of Lithuania.
M. Kozič indicated that the payment is given no earlier than 3 months after dismissal.
And he added that the payment is granted only when all employment contracts concluded with the employer are terminated and the person meets other conditions.
“An application for a benefit must be made no later than 12 months after dismissal.
There is no need to submit an application if you have already applied for any other benefit paid by “Sodra”, commented the adviser.
How is the size calculated and what does it depend on?
According to the interpretation of the “Sodra” representative, if you have worked at the workplace for 5 to 10 years, the amount of the long-term work allowance will reach 77.58 percent. one month your average salary.
If you have worked for 10 to 20 years, the amount of the long-term work allowance will be 77.58 percent. two months your average salary.
And if you have worked for more than 20 years, the long-term employment benefit will amount to 77.58 percent. three months your average salary.
The interlocutor stated that the average monthly salary is calculated based on the average of the employment-related income with that employer for the 12 months preceding the month of the employee’s dismissal, from which contributions to “Sodra” are paid, without deduction of taxes.
Generally speaking, if an employee was fired in 2024 in January, all 2023 from the same employer gross salaries (“on paper”) and their average is calculated.
The average payment amounts to 2.2 thousand. euros
According to the data of the State Data Agency, the average wage in Lithuania is currently 2110 euros.
Thus, if a person had received such a salary for the whole year, after being fired after 5-10 years, he would receive a long-term employment benefit of 1,636.9 euros.
If he had worked in that workplace for 10-20 years, the payment would amount to 3,273.9 euros.
And if it is more than 20 years old – even 4910.8 euros.
M. Kozič revealed that in 2022 5.2 thousand received the long-term work allowance, in 2023 – 5.3 thousand population.
And the average payment for long-term work last year was 2,236 euros.
To whom and what is the severance pay?
And the severance pay, which is not paid by Sodra, but by the employer, always belongs to the employees dismissed through no fault of theirs.
If a person has worked in the same workplace for less than 1 year, the severance pay amounts to 0.5 of his average salary.
If the length of service is more than 1 year, severance pay in the amount of 2 average wages of the employee is paid.
So, if the average salary is 2,110 euros, the severance pay will be 1,055 or 4,220 euros.
If you add up the long-term employment and severance benefits of a person with 20 years of experience at the same workplace and earned an average salary, 9.1 thousand would come out. euros.
The State Labor Inspectorate reminds that if an employee does not come to work for a whole day or a shift without a justifiable reason, it is considered a gross violation of the employee’s work duties.
As a result, the employer acquires the right to terminate the employment contract without notice and not to pay severance pay.
In addition, if material or non-material damage is caused to the employer by such violation of work duties, the employer has the right to demand compensation from the employee for the damage caused.
This money is not always inherited
As previously explained to tv3.lt by the Ministry of Social Security and Labor (SADM), the long-term work allowance is hereditary.
According to the Ministry, this benefit is paid to the heirs only if the deceased already had the right to receive such a benefit, but he did not receive it due to his death.
“The sums of benefits from the Guarantee and Long-Term Fund, which belonged to the employee and which he did not receive due to his death, are paid to the heirs of this deceased person, to whom his property has passed in the order of inheritance and who have applied to the administrator in accordance with the procedure established by the Regulations of the Guarantee and Long-Term Fund”, commented SADM.
She indicated that the employee should have acquired the right to receive a long-term or guarantee fund payment by the time of his death, that is, “Sodra” should have already been approached about the allocation of these payments.
And the heirs receive benefits when they submit an application and a certificate of inheritance.
Offers an allowance to provide more workers
According to SADM’s interpretation, an employee can receive a long-term employment allowance if he has worked in the same workplace for more than 5 years and was dismissed for the following reasons:
- the work function performed by the employee becomes redundant for the employer due to changes in work organization or other reasons related to the employer’s activities;
- the employee does not achieve the agreed work results in accordance with Article 57 of the Labor Code. planned performance improvement plan;
- the employee refuses to work under changed necessary or additional conditions of the employment contract or to change the type of working time regime or workplace;
- the employee does not agree with the continuity of the employment relationship in the event of the transfer of the business or its part;
- the court or the employer’s body makes a decision that terminates the employer.
Nevertheless, the ministry proposes to provide for the possibility of paying long-term work benefits to those employees who are dismissed according to Article 62 of the Labor Code, that is, in case of bankruptcy of the employer.
SADM estimates that last year 2,329 employees who had worked for one employer for at least 5 years were dismissed due to bankruptcy.
The Ministry has prepared and registered amendments to the law, which, if adopted, would allow approximately the same number of employees to additionally receive long-term employment benefits.
