Collective Bargaining

Members of the energy workers' trade union association, the General Confederation of Labour (CGT) shut off the supply of gas to the Elysee Palace, for three hours to protest against privatisation. The union underlined that the action was held because of reports saying that the authorities intend to privatise this autumn both Electricité de France as well as all of its major subsidiaries, in particular the country’s largest power grid operator Enedis. The political action took place following the government's recent decision to open the country's railway sector, currently monopolised by the SNCF railway company, to competition.

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The president of trade union CITUB is optimistic if wages keep growing in real terms at the present pace, they will reach 60% of the European average in four years' time. The director of the Institute for Social and Trade Union Studies at CITUB, on the other hand, said that despite a GDP growth rebound to 2.4% for 2017 and 2.3% expected for 2018, the labour market is deeply scarred by wounds which need to be healed while the social safety nets are gasping. They both spoke to the press during the presentation of ‘Benchmarking Working Europe 2018’.

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Workers within the whaling company Hvalur hf. have been told by the company that they may not join a trade union that recently won a back-wages cases against them in court. The union lawyers believe this measure is illegal and filed a complaint against Hvalur hf. stating that the ban on trade union membership is completely illegal in the context of the country’s existing laws on labour unions and the right of association.

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In a 2011 tender, the price difference between the PostAuto offer and the competing company was just over 2%. To win the tender PostAuto cut on labour costs by worsening working conditions. Apparently PostAuto management stated to the employees that its businesses in Liechtenstein and France could only be sustained with money from the Swiss parent PostAuto Schweiz. Personnel was told they also had to make a contribution. According to a former bus driver of the company, management shortened the entry and exit times of chauffeurs leading to up to 20 minutes unpaid working time at the expense of the driver. At the same time, the pause rules had been deleted in the employment contracts and the individual working shifts have been shortened meaning that for a 6-day week of 42 hours drivers have to be present 60 to 65 hours.

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About 400 Ryanair pilots are preparing to vote on a ‘long-term’ strike after the company refused to meet their demands and the workers representatives of the VC Ryanair Company Council left the negotiation board. The Council followed the steps of the Irish Air Line Pilots' Association, their counterpart abroad, who also left the negotiation board with the company and called its members for voting over a possible strike. The pilots ask for a pay raise and improved working conditions, like getting paid on sick days or having stable work schedules and a pension retirement system. In a newsletter the council said that it was come to the conclusion that management does not seem to want to change anything after agreeing to recognise unions.

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The Eurostat publication The European economy since the start of the millennium – a statistical portrait aims to show how main features of the economy of the European Union and its Member States have evolved since 2000 through a large range of statistical data giving both a micro- and a macro-economic perspective. Throughout the publication, brief descriptions of the main findings are completed with interactive visualisations, that make it possible to compare one country with other countries. The interactive publication has one section dedicated to household income, with part 2.1 dedicated to income, pensions and poverty.

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The government plans to oblige prison officers to provide a minimum service in prisons during long-running strikes. Unions describe this as a breach of the fundamental right to strike. Prison officers at several prisons across the country laid down their work in protest of the plan to oblige them to provide a minimum service during strikes. The strike has hit prisons across the county. Turnout varied across the country with 74% of prison officers at Flemish jails reported for work to just 11% reporting for the morning shift at a Leuven jail.

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The trade union of railway workers - the biggest of ten unions at the national railway operator, organised a first strike earlier this month and announced more strikes to follow later. The union demanded a 10% pay rise and equal treatment of all workers. The other unions signed an annex to the collective agreement that did not meet these demands. The trade union of railway workers now suspended their plans for further strikes after talks with the management came close to a solution and an agreement came in sight.

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A pay deal has been agreed that increases the gross basic salary of patrol officers and border guards from 1.075 to at least 1.280 euro in 2019. Besides the increased basic salaries staff will now get several bonuses for overnight, holiday and on-call. A total of 12.9 million euro has been earmarked for wage increases which will allow for a rise of all employees' base salaries by an average of 10%

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Half of UK workers believe a regional accent and a working-class background are barriers to success, according to a study that revealed working class representation in leadership roles is as low as 17%. The study was commissioned by the former education secretary Justine Greening, who said working class people still believed they encountered a ‘class ceiling’ with too much emphasis placed on personal connections more likely to suit middle class candidates. About half of the 2,000 people surveyed across industries and regions said those without strong regional accents found it easier to progress in their workplace.

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