As a result, Kris will no longer be allowed to carry out freight operations in Norway as of January 20, according to the association’s website.
The Norwegian Road Transport Association notes that the Norwegian Labour Inspectorate has determined that Kreiss pays truck drivers in Norway significantly less than required by Norwegian regulations.
According to the association, Kris paid the drivers only NOK 24 (€2.43) per hour, even though the minimum wage for truck drivers in Norway is NOK 175.95 (€17.81) per hour.
Since Chris’s company did not respond to the Norwegian Labor Inspectorate, it decided to stop the company’s operations in Norway.
On the other hand, Chris CEO Andrey Kuznikov told LETA that the situation with the Norwegian Labour Inspectorate was due to circumstances beyond Chris’s control, namely the intensification of international competition between the original EU and EEA members and the new member states from Eastern Europe.
“Although the EU trucking industry is subject to uniform rules, each Member State, in order to protect its internal market, individually adopts laws and regulations that restrict other Member States’ free access to the market, such as regulations on drivers’ salaries and social security,” Kuznikoffs said, adding that Kris has met all the requirements regarding truck drivers’ salaries and social security stipulated in Latvian laws and regulations. However, in order to continue operations in other EU Member States, especially Germany, France, Spain, Italy and the EEA country Norway, the company has to accept “working conditions that are often subjectively excessive, including salary and social security requirements.”
However, Kris has passed all previous annual independent audits in Norway that have looked into the company’s employment practices. Furthermore, Kris’s employees’ salaries in Norway comply with Norwegian laws and regulations. Kuznekov also said Kris has provided all the information requested by Norwegian authorities, including the Norwegian Labor Inspectorate.
The decision by the Norwegian Labour Inspectorate to temporarily suspend Kris’s operations in Norway while the authority assesses additional information provided by Kris will not have a significant impact on the company’s business. According to Kuznikov, the company will repeatedly provide all the information requested by the authority and will use all available legal means to defend its interests.
Kuznikoffs added that Chris hopes to get support from the Latvian government and the Ministry of Transport, as well as international organizations, so that Latvian truck drivers in Norway feel as comfortable as Norwegian companies feel in Latvia.
Kreiss was registered in 1994 and currently employs 2,914 people, including 2,437 international truck drivers.
The company’s turnover in 2018 amounted to EUR 174,149 million. The company recorded a loss of EUR 1,581 million in 2018 compared to a profit of EUR 1,468 million in 2017. Kreiss is owned by Kuznecovs (50%) and Sergejs Zalizko (50%).
