On 1 February 2020, the national minimum wage increased to EUR 10.10 per hour, from EUR 9.80. This has implications for employers, as various employment permits will be affected, including the Atypical Working Scheme, Intra-Company Transfer Employment Permits, and Contract for Services Employment Permits. The new rate also applies to employment permits already in issue.
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[close]Care workers have gone on strike after employers refused to discuss the possibility of a 35-hour week for the 125,000 employees in the private nursing, health and social sector. The strike was called by GPA-djp (union of private sector employees, graphical workers and journalists) and Vida (transport and services union). The warning strikes were still going on at the end of February.
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[close]After intense negotiations, an agreement was reached on a substantial wage increase. Turk Metal and Özçelik-İş unions signed the agreement. All wages will increase by 17% during the first six-month period, (while inflation is at 6.05%).
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[close]In the Basque Country and the Basque-speaking region of Navarre, tens of thousands of protesters and strikers joined a one-day general strike called by Basque-nationalist unions under the slogan ‘Jobs, pensions and decent lives’.
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[close]Kaufland, the biggest retail network in Romania and one of the biggest local employers, will increase the minimum gross income of its employees, including wage, meal vouchers and bonuses, by 10.6%, starting in March. The minimum income level will vary depending on the social and economic particularities of each region, which means that employees in regions with higher-than-average wages and a low unemployment rate will probably receive higher minimum wages than those in poorer regions.
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[close]Teachers, school leaders and other employees in education have been striking for higher wages and lighter workloads. Over 4,000 primary and secondary schools remain closed, with 59% of primary schools and 28% of secondary schools participating in the strike.
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[close]An Italian labour court will hear on 6 February 2020 the case presented by the Italian unions Fistel-CISL and SLC-CGIL against Sofidel for the company’s repeated refusal to establish a European Works Council (EWC). The unions of the tissue paper industry in Italy, together with UNI Europa, started the process of establishing an EWC in Sofidel in 2015.
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[close]The parliament is expected to approve a pension reform, which will make the so-called second pillar, the private pension back-up fund, voluntary in the future. Until now all employees have had to pay 2% of their salary into savings accounts, with the state adding another 4%. Under the reform employees will be allowed to withdraw the money from their account.
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[close]Global translation company Jonckers is offering its employees, including those in Belgium, unlimited paid vacation days, starting in March. All 172 employees of the company will be able to take paid time off whenever they like. At the very least, they are obliged to take 20 paid days of vacation. The aim of the programme is to improve employee well-being at work and address long-term absences but also to attract a talented workforce.
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[close]Many young Bulgarians graduating from secondary school do not want to work in industry, but prefer to work in the service sector. These are the results of a PISA survey conducted for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Massive changes in the labour market and the emergence of new professions have made virtually no impression on young people in Bulgaria.
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