Joint statistics of the statistical office ISTAT, the social security agency INPS and the labour ministry reveal that there was a substantial increase in employment (437,000 jobs in the 2nd quarter of 2017, compared to the same period in 2016). However, 329,000 of these jobs were on temporary contracts, and only 108,000 jobs were permanent (including apprenticeships).
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[close]Several hundred employees of the public education sector have rallied in the centre of the capital, Belgrade, urging the government to withdraw proposed new legislation on public-service employees and calling for a 25 percent increase in their salaries. The average monthly income for teachers is about 360 euro. The organising trade unions will continue the protest until authorities agree to meet their demands. The bill adopted by parliament in September gives the Education Ministry the power to fire teachers without any independent control. Critics say the law, still to be signed by the president, will deprive public service employees of their rights.
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[close]Euronews brings the story of hundreds of thousands of people working within the European Union as posted workers. They have to face several harsh realities, like having to make endless trips to and from their own countries and Western Europe, where they hold jobs which are often very poorly paid and insecure. One worker, employed by a subcontractor who was linked to a shady Serbian businessman, carried out work within a large company building offices at Frankfurt airport. He received only half the salary he had been promised for the first two months and then absolutely nothing for the following six months. Another worker tried his luck in Germany in a large company dealing with parcel deliveries, through the intermediary, yet again, of a sub-contractor. His working day would begin at half past four in the morning and finish at nine in the evening. And there were other things that didn’t come up to scratch.
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[close]The government came up with a new budget that includes a social package. The package introduces an increase in the statutory minimum wage, introduction of the 13th and 14th salaries and supplementary payments for night, weekend and holiday work and more. However, the government still needs to consult on the content with the social partners. It was said that the minimum wage should grow to over 500 euro by 2020. In the announcements, it was also said that pay proposals for the public sector will be made at the beginning of 2018 that should become effective as of 2019.
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[close]The International transport trade union federation ITF has started talks with several larger multinationals about their supply chain policy. ITF was also involved in an investigation by the BBC into European truck drivers who are being pressured working more than their allowed hours. According to the ITF it is the pressure from the multinational retailers at the top of the supply chains that is causing the exploitation of truck drivers and the violations of regulations. One of the concrete activities, is the opening of a dialogue with furniture giant Ikea about conditions for drivers in companies contracted by the firm. IKEA told the ITF that it takes the concerns very seriously and wants to cooperate with unions to achieve a solution that assures decent working conditions for all drivers transporting IKEA goods.
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[close]Unions representing Irish Rail staff are carrying out ballots for industrial action, and the company will have to be informed at least a week in advance of any work stoppage, meaning the probable dates mooted for strikes are Friday 27th to Monday 30th of October 2017. Staff at the company are seeking a 3.75% pay rise without any additional productivity measures attached. They link the demand to concessions around pay and conditions made by workers during the recessionary period. However, the company has offered a 1.5% salary increase with conditions attached, including outsourcing and the closure of some rail lines.
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[close]The trade unions in construction have one important joint aim: to work towards more legality in the sector. They presented a document that lists a series of proposals aimed at encouraging and supporting a culture of legality and security as a key factor for the country's economic and social development. It is a priority for construction and for the whole country, and a call for robust intervention and joint action against mafia lawlessness and infiltration, in support of the legal economy and fair business competition. The unions want the industry to promote and restore production and employment of companies confiscated from the mafia. Among the proposals presented, there is also the establishment of a national institute for the monitoring of information, the social use of confiscated assets, the establishment of a list of managers of seized and confiscated companies and the strengthening of interventions on labour recruitment flows.
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[close]Thousands of pensioners demonstrated across the country over increases in their taxes, the latest group to take to the streets over President Macron's economic reforms. Around eight million pensioners on more than 1,200 euros a month will pay higher social security contributions from 2018 on as the government seeks to slash the budget deficit. The nine unions behind the protests said the increase, expected to bring in 20 billion euros in revenue, will set the elderly back hundreds of euros a year.
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[close]Healthcare workers are being overburdened with work. Staff are facing burnout, and absenteeism has risen to 10%. The situation is particularly terrifying at the Geneva University Hospitals, HUG, which operates 8 hospitals in the Canton of Geneva and also runs 40 outpatient clinics. A 10-hour working day was recently introduced, a step that was much criticised by the trade unions. The 2012 Health Insurance Act entrenches the commercialisation and outsourcing of healthcare delivery, leading to the depletion of resources available for running public healthcare delivery and consequently undermining the quality of health services.
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[close]Whilst Ryanair is struggling with a reduction of services and cancellation of a myriad of flights as a consequence of mismanagement, the company’s pilots have started to organise themselves. In a letter to the management the pilots have outlined their demands for better contracts and negotiating rights. In the letter from Employee Representative Councils on behalf of around 60 Ryanair bases, the pilots say they want permanent local contracts, with employment terms to be benchmarked with regional competitor airlines, following national laws and rights, to be concluded by 1 January 2018. If that deadline cannot be met, they want agreed interim arrangements put in place. Earlier this month, the pilots rejected a proposed bonus scheme to encourage them to work through annual leave. Ryanair offered bonuses of up to €12,000, deferred for a year, if they would give up some of the annual leave entitlements to address staff shortages.
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