Last year, due to the pandemic, nearly 1,300 employees of the company were already made redundant. Another wave is expected and a total of 700 employees of the company will be released from work in the coming months.
Inta Čodere, spokeswoman for the State Employment Agency, said the redundancies would take place in two stages.
“A statement has now been received in more detail about the first phase when 200 employees are scheduled to be dismissed from Latvian Railway in September-October. It is also reported that there will be an additional application for redundancies later. In the first phase, these will be 200 employees and in the second -- 500,” she said.
Prior to the public announcement, the Latvian Railway and Traffic worker Trade Union (LDzSA) said that the company had begun negotiations with the union.
The union's vice president Aleksandrs Muhlinkins said: “It is about sorting out technological processes that can also lead to people being cut. We call for an assessment of all possible risks, including the social protection model for people. If it continues, the further, the more painful it will be, because it is important in terms of both technology and people. The human resource is not infinite, what a man can do in the performance of another person's duties is also worrying us. So we will look very carefully at the talks that will be with Latvian Railway.”
On Friday afternoon, the company issued a statement to the media explaining the dismissal by means of a review of the functions and processes to be carried out, as well as other aspects affecting the economic activities of the company.
“When assessing and optimizing the administrative and support functions of the company, as well as technological processes, a decision has been taken to reduce the number of employees of the Latvian Railway State JSC by the end of the year by approximately 700 employees,” the company statement says.
“Latvian Railway” confirmed that the reduction in the number of employees will be carried out in two stages: in September-October, it is planned to lay off around 200 employees from mainly administration and support staff in consultation with the trade union, on the other hand, the company will submit information on around 500 employees to be released in the second phase to the NVA next month, following further consultations with the National Railway Technical Inspectorate and the trade union.
