Collective Bargaining

The trade unions at Skoda Auto, the Czech unit of Volkswagen AG (VOWG.DE), have approved a collective agreement with management on working conditions and pay increase for the next two years. Wage tariffs will rise by 3.5 percent as of April 2016 and another 3 percent in January 2017; additional increases will come in other parts of salaries, including one-off payments and production related bonuses.
English: http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-skodaauto-wages .
http://www.odborykovomb.cz/rekordni-vyplata-diky-vyjednavani-odboru-kovo .

A proposal to introduce an unconditional basic income appears to enjoy little public support. A poll published ahead of a nationwide referendum on 5 June shows the campaign failing to convince voters and heading for a defeat, with just 24% of respondents in favour. There are five issues on the ballot sheet. Next to the initiative to introduce an unconditional basic income, there is a proposal by consumer rights groups to boost public services and a plan by the political right to provide extra tax funds to road transport. Two decisions by parliament are also at stake, a reform of the asylum laws and a law on the pre-implantation genetic diagnosis.
English: http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/in-depth/vote-june .

An ongoing dispute between air traffic controllers and management delayed numerous flights and an agreement has still not been reached. Flights at Keflavík International Airport were limited to only medical or emergency flights. This is due to a collective bargaining disagreement between the Icelandic Air Traffic Controllers Association (FIF) and airport management. Talks between the two parties have been at a stand-still, and in reaction FIF has instituted a ban on overtime duties since 6 April. A state arbitrator, who is handling the dispute, called a new meeting between the air traffic controllers and the management on 9 May.
English: http://grapevine.is/news/2016/04/29/flight-delays-due-to-labour-dispute/

The taxi-drivers organised nationwide action on 29 April to protest against the existence of the app-summoned, private ride-providing service Uber. Taxis in the main cities staged a go-slow on Friday, crawling along the cities' main stretches to draw attention to their cause. Earlier on, the country's two largest taxi organisations, FTP and ANTRAL, launched a week of protest action, with a campaign in which they urge taxi-users and professionals to unite in `the fight against Uber'. In their joint manifesto, which has been sent to Parliament, the associations argue that Uber is illegal because the service does not respect, obey, nor does it submit to, legal rules which regulate the activity of taxi transportation.
English: http://www.theportugalnews.com/news/taxis-to-stage-massive-nationwide-protest .

Transdev, the system operator at light rail company Luas, reached agreement with three non-driver grades, raising hopes that a deal could also be agreed with drivers. However, the dispute with the drivers hardened after operator Transdev threatened to impose a 10% pay cut on drivers if they continued their strike action over pay. Siptu, the trade union representing the workers, and Transdev failed to reach a compromise on a deal for drivers, meaning that strike actions will go ahead (see earlier Newsletters). The company wrote to drivers asking them to question what Siptu hopes to achieve by continued strike action and what basis there is for the pay increase being sought.
English: http://www.rte.ie/news .
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/luas-strikers-fury-over-threat-to-dock-pay .
http://www.rte.ie/news .

Alarming news came from the Economically Active Population Survey (EAPS), conducted since 1964. It is a quarterly continuous research focusing on families, whose main purpose is obtaining data on workforce and its several categories (employed, unemployed), as well as on population out of the labour force (economically inactive population). Employment registers a decrease of 64,600 persons in the 1st quarter of 2016 as compared with the 4th quarter of 2015 (-0.36%), reaching a total of 18,029,600 employed persons. The number of unemployed persons increased by 11,900 persons (0.25%), standing at 4,791,400 persons.
English: http://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/en/operacion .
Press releases with English graphs: http://www.ine.es/en/prensa .
http://www.ine.es/en/daco .

Trade union ACOD had announced at 24-hour strike for 26 April. The union called its members out in protest against the measures contained in the public budget. The strike covered ACOD members that work at the Justice, Interior, Foreign, Finance, Social Security, Labour, Health, Transport and Economic Affairs departments. The trade union confederations CSC/ACV and FGTB/ABVV have also planned different manifestations to protest against the government's measures. Prison workers continued with their strike after the planned 24 hours.
English: http://sputniknews.com/europe .
http://deredactie.be/cm/vrtnieuws.english/Economy .

A row over the Grimsby-based Icelandic Seachill, accused of paying for the new `national living wage' by slashing overtime rates, has been taken to the European Commission, as the workforce faces the prospect of dismissal. Officers of trade union Unite handed in a letter to the firm's Icelandic owners at the Brussels Seafood Expo Global, protesting at the UK bosses changing workers' contracts without agreement. Unite has highlighted the hard-line stance of the UK management who, the union says, are pressuring the workers to sign new contracts which will see their pay packets significantly reduced.
English: http://www.unitetheunion.org/news/grimsby-fish-firms-national-living-wage-row .

In an interesting blog the modifications in the controversial trade union bill are discussed. The government has dropped some of the most damaging proposals. However, according to the author of the blog, some harmful aspects of the draft bill are still in the text, like the unfair strike ballot turnout thresholds, rules about identifying picket leaders to the police and new membership rules that will cost the unions time and money.
English: http://touchstoneblog.org.uk/2016/04/union-campaign-scores-win-big-changes .

Private labour market intermediaries - such as temporary work agencies and employment placement agencies - contribute to facilitating labour mobility within the EU. However, due to loopholes in regulation, some workers and vulnerable groups run the risk of being exploited by fraudulent agencies. This Eurofound report examines how public authorities are currently regulating labour market intermediaries across EU Member States, highlighting the effectiveness or otherwise of different registration or licensing schemes. It also examines activities by social partners aimed at preventing the trafficking of labour. The overall aim is to contribute to the development of a best practice guide for public authorities to encourage better monitoring and enforcement of regulations deterring trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation.
English: http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/report/2016/labour-market .