Kaunas Hospital Staff Launch Mass Legal Action Over Salary Cuts

More than 3,000 employees at the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences (LSMU) Kaunas Hospital are at the center of a major labor dispute that could set a significant precedent for healthcare workers across the region. The Lithuanian trade union ‘Sandrauga’ has officially filed a series of claims with the Labor Dispute Commission, alleging that the hospital administration unilaterally and illegally reduced the fixed portion of staff salaries.

The dispute centers on a specific formula used to calculate monthly earnings. According to the union, the hospital’s Director General issued orders that effectively zeroed out a critical variable known as the ‘D component’ of the salary. This administrative maneuver resulted in a direct reduction of the guaranteed fixed pay for a vast majority of the hospital’s workforce, ranging from specialized physicians to nursing assistants and administrative staff.

Allegations of Unilateral Contract Alterations

At the heart of the legal challenge is the fundamental principle of employment law: the stability of the labor contract. Under the Lithuanian Labor Code, remuneration is considered an essential condition of employment. Any modification to these terms typically requires the explicit written consent of the employee. ‘Sandrauga’ asserts that the hospital bypassed this requirement entirely, implementing the cuts without informing the staff or obtaining their signatures.

The union’s chairman, Kęstutis Juknis, has raised alarms over what he describes as a ‘systemic problem’ within the hospital’s administration. He points to a series of contradictory orders that appear to have been applied retroactively. In one instance, an order signed on January 30th was allegedly backdated to take effect from January 1st.

“It creates the impression that orders at Kaunas Hospital have started living a life of their own—some canceling others that didn’t even exist yesterday, others being adopted retroactively,” Juknis stated. “Employees no longer know which regulations are actually in force today.”

Impact on Healthcare Professionals

The scale of the conflict is particularly significant given the current pressures on the healthcare sector. The affected staff include the very people who were lauded as national heroes during the COVID-19 pandemic. For many nurses, laboratory specialists, and registrars, the reduction in the fixed portion of their salary represents a breach of trust that goes beyond the numbers on a payslip.

The union argues that treating healthcare professionals as ‘mere lines in a financial spreadsheet’ undermines the stability of the medical system. By zeroing out components of the salary formula that were previously guaranteed in individual contracts, the administration has introduced a level of financial instability that many workers find untenable.

Questions Over Procedural Transparency

Beyond the salary cuts themselves, ‘Sandrauga’ has voiced serious concerns regarding the transparency of the legal resolution process. The union claims to have observed a pattern where cases involving Kaunas Hospital are consistently assigned to the same chairperson within the Labor Dispute Commission.

This lack of perceived randomness in case assignment has led the union to question whether the State Labour Inspectorate (VDI) is following a ‘predictable tradition’ rather than ensuring an impartial hearing. The union is now calling for a full evaluation of the legality of the Director’s orders, the annulment of the unilateral changes, and the payment of all withheld wages to the affected employees.

As the Labor Dispute Commission begins its review, the outcome will be closely watched by labor organizations across Lithuania. If the hospital’s unilateral changes are upheld, it could signal a shift in how public sector institutions manage budget constraints at the expense of established employment contracts. For now, the 3,000 staff members at Kaunas Hospital remain in a state of professional and financial limbo, waiting to see if the law will protect the terms of the contracts they signed.

Source: BNS