Prime minister calls for review of remote work in government

Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs has instructed the Finance Ministry to assess remote-work practices in the public administration, saying most government employees should return to working in person, LSM reported on Monday.

Kulbergs said practices introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic had remained too widespread in some institutions, creating problems for people who need public services or want to contact officials. He said his own experience showed that it was difficult to find employees at government institutions in person not only on Fridays but on other working days as well.

The prime minister has ordered a report on how remote work is organised in the public administration and on the possibility of restoring in-person work more widely. Exceptions could remain for certain information technology professionals and other roles with specific functions, he said, but government employees should generally be available at their workplaces.

“Covid is over; we must return and work on site,” Kulbergs said.

Economics Minister Viktors Valainis supported the initiative, saying remote work was too widespread in the public administration. He said the practice had already been restricted at the Economics Ministry and the Ministry of Agriculture, where the head of an institution may permit remote work in individual cases.

Valainis said remote work was initially a solution during the Covid-19 period that the public administration had not fully abandoned. In his view, in-person work should be the basic principle throughout the public sector. He also expressed doubts about the ability to fully monitor work processes remotely.

Coalition politicians did not give a deadline for possible changes on Monday. The Finance Ministry has been tasked with preparing an assessment of remote-work practices in the public administration and possible exceptions.