Klaipėdos universitetas

The purpose of the paper is to discuss recent immigration trends, and the policies that have been adopted by the state to facilitate the process of the integration of immigrants and their access to the labour market. The first part of the paper discusses theoretical aspects of migration, and labour migration in particular. The second part of the paper is aimed at disclosing current immigration trends among third-country nationals in Lithuania. Labour migration and the migration policy framework in Lithuania are analysed, as are integration policies. The research results reveal that Lithuania lacks an effective migrant integration policy. The evaluation of the migration policy index allows us to conclude that the policy of the integration of immigrants is the area of migration policy that needs to be improved the most in Lithuania. Lithuania’s score is lower than the average MIPEX country score, and together with Latvia it is one of the lowest in Central and East European countries. Lithuania’s approach to integration is classified by MIPEX as equality on paper. While immigrants enjoy basic rights and protection in Lithuania, they do not enjoy equal opportunities to participate in society. 

This paper focuses on paid leave policies and parents parental leave choices in Lithuania. Lithuanian paid parental leave system provides one of the longest leaves in Europe, with high replacement rates, but there is a lack of more flexible working arrangements for working parents. For an empirical analysis an administrative data of SODRA (State Social Insurance Fund Board), which includes information of all benefits recipients was used. SODRA data allowed to disclose the gender differences in the parent’s parental leave choices by gender (2011–2018). This period has been chosen because Lithuania in 2011 introduced new paid leave policy regulation, when two parental leave options were offered for parents: 100% of net earnings until the child is 12 months or 70% of net earnings until the child is 12 months, and 40% net earnings until the child is 24 months. The SODRA data had shown that although the share of fathers who take paid parental leave had increased since 2011 but in comparison to women it constituted only about 24% of all f paid parental benefits recipients. Considerably larger part of the fathers is choosing to receive the parental leave benefits the second year while they are eligible to work and benefit is not reduced.

This paper presents a subjective evaluation of the attitudes and experiences in the Lithuanian labour market of currently unemployed youths (aged 18 to 35) registered at the public employment service (PES). The main focus is on identifying the main issues related to the successful transition of youths from education to the labour market. Research questions: How do currently unemployed young people evaluate their prospects on the labour market? What is the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on youth transitions? What are the obstacles in the search for a (first) job? The study is based on survey research that was carried out in Lithuania from February to April 2021. A total of 453 young people who are currently unemployed and registered at the PES participated in the study. The results reveal that the Covid-19 pandemic has affected more vulnerable young people with a lower educational level and less work experience living in rural areas. Respondents with lower levels of education indicated greater difficulties in the search for a first job and in obtaining a stable working position. The Covid-19 pandemic has affected the transition from education to the labour market for young women more than for men.