For the employer

Additional days off for family and personal reasons

An employee may be granted additional paid or unpaid leave to take care of his/her family or personal responsibilities, thus facilitating the balance of work and personal life.

Father’s and mother’s days off

In Lithuania, parents with family responsibilities raising 2 or more children under the age of 12, or one disabled child under the age of 18, can receive additional days off, which are called father’s days off and mother’s days off. These days off are granted to both parents every month.

1 additional day off per month is granted to each parent raising 2 children under the age of 12 or one disabled child under the age of 18. 2 additional days off per month are granted to each parent raising 3 or more children under the age of 12. These days off are paid according to the employee average salary.

These additional days off can be used flexibly. For example, if an employee is entitled to receive 1 additional day off, he or she can instead request a reduction of his/her working hours by 2 hours per week.

If an employee’s shift is longer than 8 working hours, this additional time off can be added up every 3 months at the employee’s request.

Half-day off on the first day of the school year

Working parents who are not eligible to receive father’s and mother’s days off shall be granted an additional half-day off on the first day of the school year. This right can be exercised by parents who have 1 or more children under the age of 14 studying under a pre-school, primary or general education program. This time off is paid according to the employee’s average salary.

Additional leave for employees who are the sole parents of children or disabled children

In Lithuania, additional annual leave is granted to employees who are the sole parents of children under 14 years of age or disabled children under 18 years of age. They are entitled to receive an extended annual leave of 25 working days – when working five days a week, and 30 working days – when working six days a week. Employees under the age of 18 are also entitled to this leave.

Educational leave

Educational leave may be granted when an employee is studying under formal education programs and/or informal adult education programs.

Employees studying under formal education programs (e.g., in university, vocational school) may be granted educational leave for the following activities by providing the employee with a document verifying these activities:

• To prepare for and take regular exams – 3 calendar days for each exam;
• To prepare for and undergo assessments – 2 calendar days for each assessment;
• To perform laboratory work and receive consultations – for a number of days specified in the education plans and schedules;
• To complete and defend the final thesis (bachelor’s, master’s), or dissertation, or art project – 30 calendar days;
• To prepare for and take state (final) exams – 6 calendar days for each exam.

Employees studying under informal adult education programs (e.g., computer literacy, language courses, various seminars, etc.) may be granted an educational leave of up to 5 working days per year. The said leave shall be granted by notifying the employer at least 20 working days in advance. It may be granted either all at once or in parts.

Educational leave lasting up to 10 working days per year shall be paid according to at least half of the employee’s average salary amount, if:

• The employment relationship between the employee and the employer lasts for more than 5 years;
• The employee is studying under a formal education program;
• The employee is studying under informal adult education programs related to the employee’s professional development.

Employers with an average number of employees of less than 10 are not subject to employer-paid educational leave.

Creative leave

Creative leave of up to 12 months is permitted for employees to pursue creative or scientific endeavours. The payment of salary in this regard is determined by the norms of labour law and agreements between the parties.

Unpaid leave for personal and family reasons

In Lithuania, the employer must grant unpaid leave to its employees for the duration requested by the employee (or longer) in the following cases:

• To employees raising a child under the age of 14 – up to 14 calendar days;
• To disabled employees, or employees raising disabled children under the age of 18, or caring for a disabled person requiring continuous care – up to 30 calendar days;
• At the request of the employee, during the maternity and parental leave of his/her spouse or partner; the total duration of this leave may not exceed three months;
• To employee caring for a sick family member, or employee who provides the conclusion of a healthcare institution regarding his or her state of health – for the duration of time recommended by the healthcare institution;
• To employee who is getting married – up to 3 calendar days;
• To employee who needs to attend the funeral of a deceased family member – up to 5 calendar days;
• To employees in the cases and in accordance with the procedures specified in the collective agreement – for the duration of time specified therein.

This leave may be paid at the initiative of the employer.

At the request of the employee and with the consent of the employer, unpaid days off may be provided to the employee for personal reasons during his/her working day (shift). The parties to the employment contract may agree to transfer working time to another working day (shift), without violating the requirements of maximum working time and minimum rest time*.

In accordance with the procedures established by law, an employee shall be released from his/her obligation to work while preserving his/her job, if this is necessary for the performance of his/her public, state, civic or other duties.

* Working time may not exceed 40 hours per week (Art. 114 of the LC); the duration of uninterrupted rest between working days (shifts) may not be shorter than 11 consecutive hours per 24-hour period, and a weekly uninterrupted rest period shall not be shorter than 35 hours (Art. 122 of the LC).

Source:

Labour Code of the Republic of Lithuania, Articles 135, 136, 137 and 138.