Some business and industry organisations began a campaign against the binding extension of collective agreements. Generally binding collective agreements form an important part of the labour market model; even employers who are not members of an employers' association must comply with a nationwide collective agreement that is considered representative of the field in which the company operates. The arrangement is based on the Employment Contracts Act with a specific confirmation board to determine the generally binding nature. The extension safeguards the minimum working conditions of employees, prevents unfair competition between companies and guarantees equal pay. Thanks to the system, the coverage of collective agreements in the public sector accounts for 100% of employees, and in the private sector for 75.5%.
English: http://heikkijokinen.info/en/trade-union-news-from-finland/1060-will-the-future .
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A study of the trade union confederation SGB/USS documents the income distribution. Some progress was made in the lowest pay echelons of the labour market, probably because of the minimum wage campaign and thanks to an active trade union strategy. However, other developments are worrying. The wage gap between the lowest income and the high earners did not decrease. According to SGB/USS, this is the result of an unsocial tax and social security policy that works out in favour of the higher income earners (their income tax decreased between 2000 and 2014 from 37 to 32%).
German: http://www.sgb.ch/themen/wirtschaft/verteilung .
French: http://www.uss.ch/themes/economie/repartition .
The study (German with French synthesis): http://www.sgb.ch/fileadmin .
A consultancy firm has quizzed 713 businesses employing over 160,000 people to gain insight into the wage picture. So far, wages increased 1.2% on average in 2016. The rise occurred in spite of the government's decision to put the index out of action. Only 11% of businesses said that they had not awarded any pay increase whatsoever. In the same period, bonuses even rose 1.6%. The figures are striking given the index freeze and the 0.8% wage restraint norm in 2016. However, the 1.2% wage increase remains the lowest since 2009. Many companies are sidestepping wage restraint by offering bonuses instead. Today one in two employees is on variable remuneration. Six out of ten employees qualify for a bonus.
English: http://deredactie.be/cm/vrtnieuws.english/News/1.2712421
The LCGB trade union underlined during a special press conference that the social aspect of Brexit is its main concern. The union stated that it is not acceptable that talks are only about financial aspects of Brexit for the 6,000 British residents in Luxembourg. What about working situations? What about housing? Health? Rights to pensions? With that in mind LCGB sent an open letter to the government stating that their stance is that everything should be done in their power to maintain the current status quo of the British residents in the country and indeed the 1,200 registered young Luxembourgish students in the UK.
English: http://www.wort.lu/en/politics/lcgb-brexit-press-conference-luxembourg .
The fourth round in collective bargaining for the banking sector led to an agreement. Trade union ver.di and the employers in private (AGV Banken) and public banking (VÖB) reached an agreement for the 205,000 workers in the sector. The agreement runs for 33 months. It includes three pay increases: 1.5% on 1 October 2016, 1.1% on 1 January 2017 and 1.1% on 1 November 2017. Apprentices will receive an extra 50 euro in October 2016. The bargaining partners also agreed to work on a new wages system, to initiate talks on the improvement of the vocational training for the sector and on the impact of digitalisation.
English: http://archyworldys.com/collective-agreement-bank-employees-earn-more-from-october/
German: http://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/deutschland/tarifeinigung-mehr-gehalt .
Members of the National Federation of Unions in Public Administration (FNSA) started a series of protests on 5 July. 30,000 city hall and county council employees stopped work for one hour. The one-hour strike was a protest against the unfair wage policies on remuneration and rights of local public administration employees compared to those working in the central government, an FNSA statement says. The central public administration employees have benefited from wage increases of up to 70%, meanwhile, most of the city hall and county council employees have gross wage earnings similar or close to the gross minimum wage. FNSA's claims include holiday vouchers for the employees and a 25% salary increase for civil servants and the contractual staff. In case the claims are not met, the union members will continue the protests.
English: http://www.romania-insider.com/public-administration-romania-strike .
A newly established tourism council has proposed to start hiring seasonal workers from abroad in order to improve the quality of service offered in the country's summer and winter resorts. The council identified the lack of well-trained staff as the most considerable problem of the sector. According to the tourism minister and council experts, the period of traineeships offered in the tourism sector should be extended from 3 to 6 months. The minister said that Bulgarians prefer to work abroad due to the better conditions and remuneration. In the Black Sea resorts, a typical low-qualified worker on eight-hour working day earns a minimum monthly salary of BGN 500.
English: http://www.novinite.com/articles/175389/Bulgarian+Resorts+to+Start+Hiring .
A DARES report reveals that more than 80% of part-time French workers are women. The statistical service of the Labour Ministry found that nearly a third of women employees work part-time, compared to just 7.0% of men, and the proportion is even higher among women with partners. There has been a great increase in part-time working in recent years. Only 8% of the workforce was part-time in 1975, by the middle of the 1980s it had risen to 10% and in 2013, it was 19%. The study found that 31% of women work part-time, slightly lower than the European average of 32.2%, with a high degree of involuntary part-time work. Since, nearly a third of part-time workers would rather be working full-time; this is especially the case among young or less qualified people or those approaching retirement age. The proportion of women among the 68% who have chosen part-time employment, as well as the fact that 45% of women workers with three or more children are part-timers, shows that the burden of childcare and housework still falls on women.
English: http://en.rfi.fr/economy/20160709-80-percent-frances-part-time-workers-are .
The report (in French): http://travail-emploi.gouv.fr/IMG .
Six Uber drivers were successfully prosecuted and fined in Copenhagen in a long-awaited ruling on 8 July for illegally offering a taxi service without a licence. They had claimed they were car-pooling. The drivers are expected to appeal with Uber's backing. Trade union 3F stated that in Danish law the Uber business-model is illegal. The union expects the police to stop and investigate more Uber drivers in the coming months. Trade union confederation LO said that it is necessary to stop the illegal and unfair competition created by Uber.
English: http://www.itfglobal.org/en/news-events/news/2016/july/itf-union-welcomes .
http://www.thelocal.dk/20160708/court-ruling-could-mean-the-end-for-uber-in-denmark
The government decided to close the old lignite-fuelled power stations in the Lusatia mining region. Berlin has committed to reducing CO2 emissions 40% by 2020, compared with 1990 levels. Yet the country still relies on highly polluting coal combustion for over 40% of its electricity. The government's decision is a worry for Vattenfall, the owner of Lusatia's mines and power plants. The Swedish company directly employs 8,000 people in the region. Its subcontractors employ another 9,000. To compensate for the closure of the power stations, the state plans to pay out a total of €1.6 billion to the companies concerned. The European Commission approved this measure. Thanks to the aid, Vattenfall plans no redundancies at Lusatia. No aid will go to the subcontractors and the authorities in the region estimate that a thousand jobs will be lost.
English: http://www.equaltimes.org/germany-s-difficult-departure-from .