Valka municipality to allow staff two remote work days per week
Valka municipality is introducing a policy allowing employees to work remotely two days a week, partly driven by rising fuel prices. Other Vidzeme municipalities take differing approaches to remote work.
The Valka municipal government has decided to allow its employees to work remotely two days a week. One reason behind the decision is the rise in fuel prices, which has made commuting to work more costly for staff.
Practices vary across municipalities
Attitudes toward remote work differ among municipalities in the Vidzeme region. In some places, remote work has already become an established practice, familiar to residents and employees for some time. In others, municipalities had abandoned remote work once the Covid-19 pandemic ended, but are now reintroducing it.
Competing for specialists
Municipalities returning to remote work explain the move as a way to support employees while also competing for qualified specialists. Attracting and retaining staff through salary alone is becoming increasingly difficult, prompting local governments to seek additional ways to stay competitive in the labor market.
The option to work remotely is thus becoming one of the tools municipalities use to retain current employees and attract new specialists in a region where competition for qualified labor is increasingly noticeable.
