Prime minister says statutory officers deserve better pay and security

Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius said statutory officers must receive fair pay and feel socially secure, LRT reported. He made the remarks after meeting with the National Association of Statutory Officers’ Trade Unions on Thursday.

The meeting covered the competitiveness of statutory services, the system’s long-term sustainability, social guarantees and motivation for officers, as well as cooperation with trade unions.

“In challenging times, the work of officers is particularly important for the security of our state and the wellbeing of society. We must therefore ensure that these people have suitable conditions to serve the state, are fairly paid and feel socially secure,” Sinkevičius said in a statement issued by the government.

The government’s programme provides for consistent pay increases for statutory officers at all levels, social guarantees matching their status, efforts to restore an allowance for length of service, better conditions for combining service with family life and measures to encourage officers to remain in service longer.

The government also aims to strengthen collective labour relations and trade unions’ participation in decision-making.

According to the government, these priorities are already producing results. In 2026, the combined wage fund for statutory services increased by 7 percent, with an additional 39.2 million euros allocated for officers’ salaries.

Minimum official salary coefficients were increased at the start of the year, while the official salaries of some officers were also raised. A 300-euro compensation payment for long-term service has also come into force.

“The government is consistently seeking to improve the working conditions of officers who perform an extremely important job. The voice of trade unions is very important in this process. Only through constructive cooperation can we find long-term solutions,” Sinkevičius said.

In late July, Interior Minister Martynas Katelynas said a larger share of statutory services’ budgets could be allocated to officers’ salaries to ensure their continued growth. He said institutions could review whether they were spending money efficiently on infrastructure or vehicle fleets, for example.