Unpaid Wages and Holiday Pay: What to Do When an Employer Stops Responding
A dismissed employee in Latvia has received neither her final salary nor payment for unused annual leave, and her employer ignores calls and emails. The State Labour Inspectorate explains how workers can defend their rights.
A woman in Latvia who was dismissed on 21 August has received neither her final salary nor compensation for unused annual paid leave, and her former employer does not answer calls or emails. The reader, named Zane, turned to the Latvian newspaper Latvijas Avīze's portal LA.LV for advice. Dace Stivriņa, head of the Client Support Department at the State Labour Inspectorate, the state body that supervises compliance with labour law, provided an explanation.
Zane says she had accumulated about five weeks of unused leave before her employment ended, but no calculation has been made for it.
What the employee is owed
Stivriņa stresses that when employment ends, the employer must pay all amounts due, including unpaid wages and compensation for unused leave. This is set out in Section 149, part five, of the Labour Law. The final settlement should normally be made on the day employment ends. If the employee did not work on the day of dismissal, the money must be paid no later than the day after the employee requests the final settlement (Section 128, part one).
Steps if the money is not paid
The employee is advised first to send the employer a written demand to its legal address, requesting payment of the unpaid salary and compensation for all unused leave. The document should be prepared in two copies: one sent by registered mail, the other kept together with the postal receipt as evidence.
If the violation is not remedied, the employee has the right to file a court claim for recovery of the unpaid pay. No state fee is payable for such a claim, although the court may order the losing side to reimburse the other party's legal costs. The employee may also turn to the State Labour Inspectorate, which can inspect the employer. For tax matters, the State Revenue Service can be approached.
Limitation periods
Claims arising from employment relations generally expire after two years. If the employer was required to issue a written settlement, the period runs from the day it was issued. If no settlement was issued, a claim can be brought within three years of the day it should have been provided.
