Negotiations a new collective agreement on salaries and benefits for health sector workers that has been going on for years remains deadlocked. Trade union OGBL have organised a strike committee that is preparing for a strike. According to the OGBL their demands (including a salary rise and upgrading of careers) would only be accepted in return for worse working times.
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[close]Trade union confederation LO published its Economic forecast. LO expects that the workforce will be growing steadily in the coming years and the potential for further growth in employment is therefore strong. The majority of companies get the workers they need and labour shortages are very modest and almost unchanged compared to last year. In certain areas, however, there are challenges when it comes to attracting employees with specific qualifications, including skilled workers. It will be crucial to invest in those who are marginalised and without a foothold on the labour market. Also, more investment in training, education and skills’ upgrading is needed.
Read on: in English … The forecast: in Danish …
[close]Air traffic controllers went on a four-hour strike on 8 June while negotiations on a renewal of their collective labour agreement, which expired on 31 December 2016, remain deadlocked. The air traffic controllers stopped their work amidst the busiest time of the week. Many flights were cancelled due to the strike. Airline Alitalia has been most affected by the strike with more than 100 cancellations. A new 24-hour strike has been announced on the 5 July, from midnight-midnight.
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[close]A majority of the NHS workers voted in favour of a 6,.5% pay deal. Members of 13 unions in England accepted the deal to end 1% pay cap, only the GMB union rejected the deal. Over 1 million hospital cleaners, nurses, security guards, physiotherapists, emergency call handlers, paramedics, midwives, radiographers and other NHS staff that voted in favour of the deal will now get the money in their July pay packets, backdated from April. The deal means an average 6.5% increase over a three-year period with more for the low-paid, through a combination of cost-of-living pay rises and faster incremental increases. Lower-paid staff will get an immediate 2,000 pounds increase, taking them above the living wage and no one will get paid an hourly wage below 8.93 pounds.
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[close]When the government presented its plans for a new labour legislation involving initiatives to increase flexibility and leading to more overtime work, unions already expressed their concerns and disproval (see our May newsletter). This month, the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK) stated that the government has in practise ended any tripartite consensus when drafting new labour legislation. SAK claims that the government has been inviting labour market parties just to listen to what changes are planned, not to participate.
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[close]An agreement was reached between trade union FNV and the temporary employment agency In Person on the equal pay of over 400 parcel sorters. The parcel sorters were temporary agency workers who worked for PostNL, a mail and parcel solutions firm. The more than 400 temporary agency workers will be paid by 1 July 2018, according to the PostNL collective labour agreement. In December 2017, FNV alleged that both PostNL and the In Person were liable for the underpayment the temporary workers who sort packages at PostNL's parcel depots. The employees were not paid according to the PostNL collective labour agreement.
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[close]Statistics Austria published its Yearbook 2017 with final data online. The report (in German, but with an English summary) reveals that the employment rate for the population aged 15 to 64 years increased to 72.2%. There were 247 900 unemployed persons, the unemployment rate amounted to 5.5%. In 2017, 47.7% of female employed and 11.9% of male employed persons worked part-time, in total 28.7% of all persons employed. A separate paragraph (2.6) provides data on the wage developments (in 2016).
Read on: in German …
[close]Judges of the European Court of Human Rights ruled that police violated article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which confers the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, including for trade unions, without restriction other than those prescribed by national law in the interests of national security or public safety. The violation of human rights took place in 2012 when the police blocked a protest at Budapest Ferenc Liszt airport and prevented the United Civil Aviation Trade Union’s right to free assembly. The court ordered to pay the union’s costs, it held that the finding of the violation itself was sufficient just satisfaction of the union’s damages.
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[close]The Danish government and three political parties have concluded an agreement on work in the platform economy. Trade union confederation that had put forward a proposal to ensure targeted control with the digital platforms speaks about a ‘promising’ initiative. However, there are still pending issues when it comes to employers’ liability towards the persons working on the platform and working conditions like pension contributions, pay during sickness, maternity leave.
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[close]The Chamber of Labour and trade union confederation ÖGB launched a large-scale dialogue with the membership. The campaign led to the organisation of Dialog meetings across the country, ranging from workplace visits to street pickets. The two organisations summed up the outcome in a first report. A crucial part of the action was the organisation of a survey on the future of labour. The response was impressive, with 300,000 people responding to the questions raised. The survey included questions on issues such as the planned introduction of more possibilities for enlarging the working time (to 12 hours), the need to act against social dumping, the equal treatment of men and women and paid days off for educational purposes.
Read the summary: in German … The report: in German … See also: on YouTube …
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