The average net wage has increased by 4.55%, with the average employee earning 838 euro a month. This is compared to 802 euro workers received at the end of the first quarter in 2014 when the Troika abandoned Lisbon after a four-year stay. Two subsequent increases in the minimum wage, from 485 to 505 euro and then to 530 euro assisted in pushing up average earnings. The Labour Cost Index (working days adjusted) increased by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter of 2016, compared with the same period in 2015. In the previous quarter, a year-on-year increase of 0.7% was recorded. The OECD still stresses that structural reforms are needed to enhance growth and reduce labour market segmentation. It is admitted that these can be disruptive in the short run.
English: http://www.theportugalnews.com/news/average-wage-up-since-troika-departure .
https://www.eurofound.europa.eu/observatories/eurwork/articles/working-conditions .
OECD Outlook: https://www.oecd.org/portugal/Employment-Outlook-Portugal-EN.pdf
Quarterly data: https://www.ine.pt/xportal .
Search results
Find articles
The Chamber of Labour published a brochure about the threats and challenges of todays' welfare state. In different sections, a broad range of social provisions that guarantee a decent (working) life is sketched out. Included are data on income inequality, education and training, health care and living and working conditions. At the end, an overview is given of the strength and weaknesses of the actual welfare state.
The brochure (in German): https://media.arbeiterkammer.at/wien/PDF/Broschueren/Sozialstaat .
The government announced an increase of the salaries of the civil servants as from November already, two months earlier than planned. The volume of money for civil servants' salaries will be raised by 5 percent, while the base pay will increase by 4 percent. The government also agreed with raising salaries in education as from September. The salaries of teachers will increase by 6 percent and of other school employees by 4 percent. The total volume of finances for their remuneration (including bonuses) will increase by 8 and 5 percent, respectively. The earlier increase of salaries of civil servants - planned originally as from January 1, 2017 - has been demanded by the trade unions, which also pushed for an earlier increasing of the salaries in education. The unions said the economy is doing well and that is why the pay increases are possible.
English: http://praguemonitor.com/2016/08/11/wages-22000-czech-soldiers-rise-november
http://praguemonitor.com/2016/07/28/civil-servants-pay-rise-november
On 12 August, International Youth Day, the statistical office STATEC looked at the situation of young people (up to 24 years) and published some figures on their daily lives. On 1 January 2016, 163 454 residents were less than 25 years old; their part in the total population is continuously decreasing. The labour market participation of the young residents (16 to 24) in 2015 was 29%, slightly less than the European average (33%). The life satisfaction of youngsters is high.
French: http://www.statistiques.public.lu/catalogue-publications/regards/2016 .
EasyJet pilots stationed in Amsterdam will continue with a series of strikes, pilots union VNV announced. The pilots are striking for a better collective bargaining agreement. They want guaranteed sick leave pay, more time to rest between flights and a better pension regulation. The notification for the strike will be giving late in order to prevent EasyJet hiring temporary pilots to fly during the actions, as they did in a previous labour dispute. More actions will follow if the airline does not address the pilots' demands.
English: http://www.nltimes.nl/2016/08/11/schiphol-based-easyjet-pilots-striking-thursday/
After the publication of the list of shame, detailing almost 200 employers who have failed to pay the national minimum wage, trade union confederation TUC stated that employers who try to duck the minimum wage must have nowhere to hide. Trade union Unite warned that the list is just the tip of the iceberg. The 197 companies named owed £465,291 in arrears, across a range of employers including football clubs, hotels, care homes and hairdressers. Since the scheme was introduced in October 2013, 687 employers have been named and shamed, with total arrears of more than £3.5 million.
English: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/largest-ever-list .
https://www.tuc.org.uk/industrial-issues/there-must-be-no-place .
http://www.unitetheunion.org/news/list-of-minimum-wage-shame-the-tip-of-the-iceberg .
In an analysis from Jobindsats.dk, it was found that foreigners accounted for 25,872 of the 41,381 new jobs created between 2013 and 2015. Danes filled 15,509 of the new positions. The Economic Council of the Labour Movement (Arbejderbevægelsens Erhvervsråd) considered the foreigners' inroads into the labour market a good thing and called it a success in that it is a sign of better integration of immigrants and their descendants. On the other hand, observers see the risk of growing social dumping.
English: http://www.thelocal.dk/jobs/article/foreigners-fill-more-than-half .
The analysis (in Danish): http://www.ugebreveta4.dk/udlaendinge-faar-hvert-andet-nye-job .
Trade union Tekgida-Is signed a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with Coca-Cola Içecek, the bottler of Coca-Cola products, to apply at its 6 plants. The agreement that covers approximately 1300 workers includes a mechanism for 200 forklift drivers to be included. Prior to this agreement, forklift drivers were not members of the union and were not enjoying the rights and benefits of a CBA. The agreement provides for significantly improved wages and social benefits and most importantly provide collective bargaining protections and union representation for 1300 workers whom were without a union for the last 5 years.
English: http://www.iuf.org/ccww .
After building a more than 100-mile-long barrier to keep migrants out, Hungary is considering a plan to invite thousands of `guest workers.' The economy minister backs up a proposal from the Confederation of Employers and Industrialists to recruit hundreds of thousands of migrants from outside the EU to offset a growing shortage of skilled labour. The government has warned for a wage explosion. The country lost 0.25% of its population in 2015, a decline largely driven by a falling birth rate. Tens of thousands of migrants are needed to make up for the labour shortage after years of low birth rate and emigration. In the meantime, students are frequently being sought for positions previously filled by full-time employees. Due to the high demand for student workers, their wages have risen 15-20% higher than the minimum wage level. The ratio of students on the labour market is believed to have increased recently by approximately 20-30%.
English: http://www.tol.org/client/article/26103-hungary-labor-migrants-guest-workers.html
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-08-04/hungary-s-labor-woes-may-trigger .
http://bbj.hu/economy/labor-shortage-triggers-better-pay-for-student-workers .
The SNPNC and the Unsa-PNC unions organised a strike of Air France stewards from July 27 to August 2. The two unions, which represent around 45 percent of the company's stewards and airhostesses, called for the strike after failed negotiations with the new CEO of Air France-KLM. The third largest union, Unac with 22 percent of workers, also had representatives at the meeting but decided to postpone their call to action until October. The flight attendants and flight assistants went on strike, which forced Air France to suspend around 1,000 flights, to demand a larger period for the expiry of their working contracts.
English: http://www.plenglish.com/index.php .
http://www.thelocal.fr/20160707/air-france-stewards-call-for-week-long-summer-strike