In its report of the socio-economic situation in 2015 the Central statistical office GUS indicates that the employment situation has slightly improved compared to the year 2014. According to estimates, the number of persons employed in the national economy at the end of 2015 was by approx. 2% higher than a year before. Paid employment in the enterprise sector gradually strengthened in subsequent months and, as a result, in the whole year a growth by 1.3% was recorded (compared to the increase by 0.6% a year before). According to the labour demand survey, in the three quarters of 2015 more new jobs were created than in the corresponding period of 2014; at the same time, fewer jobs were reduced. Average monthly nominal gross wages and salaries in the enterprise sector grew at a stable pace (3.5%), slightly slower than in 2014.
English (report and tables): http://stat.gov.pl/en/topics/other-studies/informations-on-socio .
Search results
Find articles
A group of about 400 workers from troubled steel group ILVA staged a march that blocked a main highway interchange in Genoa. It was the second day of protests, following the occupation of the company's Cornegliano plant. The trade unions have accused the government of `ripping up' a recent accord, and have asked a member of government to be present at a meeting to take place at the Ministry of Economic Development.
English: http://www.ansa.it/english/news/politics/2016/01/26/ilva-protesters-cause .
Hundreds of schools were shut in the last week of January as over 11,000 teachers went on strike for higher salaries and larger school budgets. The government has agreed a 4 percent pay raise for teachers in 2016 following a 5 percent raise for the past three years. But the protesters, who made up about 12 percent of all teachers in the country, say it is too little. Many teachers work two jobs to make ends meet. Schools lack money to buy proper teaching aids. The unions have announced that the strike will continue until the requests are met. The education ministry sent a calculation to the media that the average teacher makes €997 per month.
English: http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-slovakia-education-strike .
http://spectator.sme.sk/c/20077765/strike-will-close-schools.html
There has been much talk about mass redundancies at the northeast Estonia based shale oil producer Viru Keemia Grupp (VKG), but extensive lay-offs are planned by other companies of Ida-Viru County as well. According to data of the Ida-Viru division of the Estonian Trade Union Confederation (EAKL), at least 163 people more are about to lose their jobs in the first half of 2016. In February the municipal bus company Narva Bussiveod will cease operations, making 76 people redundant. Due to the completion of the Auvere power plant of the state-owned energy group Eesti Energia, the energy engineering company GE Alstom Estonia will reduce its workforce, letting go 19 workers in February and another 68 in May. According to the trade union, 223 of the company's 399 employees will be laid off in 2017, leaving it with a staff of just 176. The state-owned postal company Omniva also plans to reduce its Ida-Viru County workforce in the summer.
English: http://news.err.ee .
Currently, a political debate is going about the necessary indexation of pensioners' income. The €8 increase in the average pension will not help pensioners, who receive among the lowest pensions in Europe. Suggestions have been done to index the pensions, which would make them increase together with growing average wages.
English: http://en.delfi.lt/lithuania/economy/indexed-pensions-may-not-help-lithuanian .
The trade union journal Fagbladet 3F has for the first time produced a list of the companies where the most work-related injuries are sustained, and some of the country's most prominent companies have the dubious honour of being included. Hilton Foods Danmark had the highest rate of injuries, the wind turbine producer LM Wind Power came second, and the cleaning company Kongsvang Rengoringsservice had the third-highest rate of workplace injuries. The country's biggest slaughterhouse company Danish Crown was number nine on the list. According to the figures published, which are based on data collected for all reported workplace injuries between 2012 and 2014, there is a 5 percent chance of a Danish Crown employee being injured at work in any given year. The trade union magazine reported that companies with a working environment certificate, including some of the companies in the top ten, are not regularly inspected by Arbejdstilsynet, even if a lot of accidents are registered there.
English: http://cphpost.dk/news/business/trade-union-3f-publishes-denmarks-first .
http://cphpost.dk/news/business/danish-companies-with-high-accident-rates-avoiding .
Employees of Latvia's KVV Liepajas Metalurgs steel company have sent the Prime Minister, the Economics Minister and the Finance Minister a letter calling for a meeting with the company's employees who want to discuss their pressing issues with government representatives. According to the letter, the KVV Liepajas Metalurgs employees are aware of the deep crisis that has hit the metallurgical industry in Europe and elsewhere in the world and that it became even worse in the second half of 2015.
English: http://www.baltic-course.com/eng/markets_and_companies .
The European Commission released its annual Employment and Social Developments in Europe (ESDE) report for 2015. The ESDE report gives a review of the latest employment and social trends, reflecting on upcoming challenges and possible policy responses. According to the report, despite recent improvements, huge disparities still exist between EU Member States, in terms of economic growth, employment and other key social and labour market indicators. The report looks at ways of addressing the disparities, focusing on job creation, labour market efficiency, social protection modernisation and investment in people. According to the report the EU can make better use of its human resources through mobility. Although the number of mobile workers has increased over the past 20 years, their share in the total work force remains limited: only 4% of the EU's population aged 15 to 64 live in a Member State other than the one they were born in. Yet, the review states that mobile EU workers tend to have better employment prospects overall than the native population. In addition, EU worker mobility shows to have reduced unemployment in some member states and has helped address staff shortages in receiving countries. The ESDE 2015 review also finds that there is a significant share of non-EU workers in occupations below their qualification level. According to the report, fighting long-term unemployment is crucial when striving to improve labour market efficiency, as the long-term unemployed have about half the chance of finding employment compared to short-term unemployed.
English: http://www.staffingindustry.com/eng/Research-Publications/Daily-News .
The report: http://ec.europa.eu/social/main .
The next salary indexation could take place in June, according to the latest estimates from the Banque centrale du Luxembourg (BCL). In its 2015/3 bulletin, published on 22 January, BCL states that, based on current inflation projections, the next indexation increases should only be triggered in June 2016 and September 2017. Headline inflation, which rebounded from its minimum -0.6 percent in December 2014 to 0.8 percent in November 2015, should remain at levels close to one percent until August 2016 before picking up, notes BCL. The annual average rate of change of the consumer price index, which had fallen to 0.6 percent in 2014, went back down again to 0.5 percent in 2015 before recovering to 1.1 percent in 2016. BCL explains that with the decline in headline inflation, the payment of the next indexation, scheduled for Q1 2016, would be postponed to Q2 2016. Concerning real wages, BCL notes that the recovery of the economic outlook should contribute in strengthening the bargaining power of employees. Overall, nominal wages are expected to grow 1.3 percent in 2015 before increasing to 1.9 percent in 2016 and 3.0 percent in 2017.
English: http://www.wort.lu/en/business/bcl-projections-luxembourg-s-next .
The BCL bulletin (in French): http://www.bcl.lu/fr/publications/bulletins_bcl .
A study by the government's advisory group SER and the Council for Culture reveals that cutbacks in the cultural sector have had a serious impact on the employment and the earnings in the art world. Some 20 thousand permanent jobs disappeared and the sector is now dominated by low-paid freelancers. Half of people working in culture earn less than 30 thousand euros a year. On almost all fronts the cultural sector scores lower than the national averages. This conclusion applies to both workers and self-employed. Self-employment increased with 20.4%; this was not a free choice, but an economic necessity. However, self-employed are often not insured for occupational disability and their pension situation is worrying.
English: http://www.nltimes.nl/2016/01/22 .
The report (in Dutch): https://www.ser.nl/~/media/files/internet/publicaties/overige .