On 8 May, the Engine Drivers' Union stated that it had planned a warning strike on 15 May to draw attention to `the catastrophic situation' in the national railways (HZ) passenger, transport and cargo companies, while at the same time the Railway Workers' Union would stage a protest rally outside the government offices in St Mark's Square. All HZ trains would be halted for two hours to bring the attention of the Transport and infrastructure Minister to the risks to transport safety, the lack of social dialogue, failure to address the accumulated problems in both companies, failed business decisions, and violations of workers' rights, the two unions said in a joint statement. After intervention from the ministry, trade unions and HZ reached an agreement over intensification of the social dialogue and complete involvement of the unions in the restructuring process. The unions agreed to call of the warning strike and any other strikes in the upcoming year, with the exception of those that are directly related to a possible new collective agreement.
English: http://dalje.com/en-croatia/engine-drivers-and-management-reach-deal ...
http://dalje.com/en-croatia/croatian-engine-drivers-announce-two-hour-warning-strike ...
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The Global Union Research Network (GURN) has distributed the ILO-report Global Employment Trends for Youth 2013. The report acknowledges the key role that social partners can play, for instance in apprenticeship systems characterised by close collaboration between public policy, training providers, enterprises and social partners. According to the report the enforcement of labour laws and collective agreements should be strengthened, including through stronger and more effective sanctioning mechanisms, as means to protect young workers and facilitate their transitions into stable and decent employment. The development of a coherent wage policy framework that takes account of the observance of minimum wages set by law or by collective agreement can give many young people the opportunity to overcome poverty and low paid work.
English: http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public ...
As the last of six unions that went on strike at PSA Peugeot Citron in Aulnay, CGT has seized its industrial actions and has signed an agreement with Peugeot. The five other trade unions CFDT, CFTC, CFE/CGC, FO and GSEA signed an agreement about replacement assistance and restructuring earlier (as reported in the newsletter), which CGT refused to join. The separate agreement with CGT allows all its activists to opt into the earlier agreement, but requires all workers to go back to work, CGT to stop any actions against the restructuring plan and allows the company to forego payment of wages to the striking working for the entire duration of the strike.
English: http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20130517 ...
A four-day strike at the Brussels airport came to an end as the luggage-handling firm Swissport reached an agreement with the trade unions. The strike by luggage-handlers over working conditions left more than 20,000 pieces of luggage stranded in the country's largest hub. The unions say staff shortages at the company have led to excessive work pressure and compromised workers' safety.
English: http://news.yahoo.com/brussels-airport-moves-end-baggage-handlers-strike ...
Trade union membership levels are the lowest recorded since the transition to democracy, says a CBOS survey from April this year. Only 10% of Poles are now affiliated with any trade union; the number halved since 1991 and dwarfed compared to the 1980s, when independent trade union Solidarnosz alone could count 25% of the population as its members.
English: http://www.thenews.pl/1/9/Artykul/135797,Trade-union-membership-falls ...
The Association of Free and Independent Trade Unions has warned that the position of workers has never been worse in recent history. The union made this statement because of the enormous number of jobless people, the permanent disregard of the Labour Law and collective agreements, no guarantee of payment for work done and no payments of social or pension contributions.
English: http://www.b92.net/eng/news ...
Both RBS and HSBC have announced further job cuts. Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is to cut a further 1,400 jobs from its retail banking head office over the next two years. Most of the job losses are expected to be at RBS's offices in Edinburgh. Trade union Unite has described the cuts as `brutal'. Meanwhile, the bank HSBC has said it may cut an additional 14,000 jobs globally as part of a restructuring plan to reduce costs and increase profitability.
English: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22550543
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22537306
The TV-channel ARD broadcasted a SWR-report on the working conditions at a Daimler plant in Stuttgart that revealed the use of subcontractors as a method to circumvent the normal wages and working conditions. An undercover reporter contacted a staffing firm which transferred him to a logistics company used by the Daimler plant. The carmaker was accused of illegally using temporary employment, a claim the firm denies. In the meantime the public prosecutor has reacted and introduced an investigation against management.
English: http://www.staffingindustry.com/eng/Research-Publications ...
German: http://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/industrie/ard-reportage-undercover .
http://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/industrie/nach-ard-reportage-strafanzeige .
Strike actions by the National Bus and Rail Union have completely paralysed the bus traffic. Government has invited the union to re-enter talks with the company. Both sides have indicated they are available for talks in the dispute, which centres on a proposal to introduce a ?5 million cost-cutting plan. But, the trade union NBRU has said it is not reasonable to set preconditions to negotiations, such as requiring unions to come to the table with alternative cost-saving measures. After more than 26 hours of mediated negotiations, the parties found an agreement which ended the strike. The agreement, which will last for nineteen months, includes a larger pay cut for management and protects anti-social shift payments.
English: http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/0516/450556-bus-eireann-strike/
http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/0513/391899-bus-eireann-strike/
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/bus ...
The German journal Der Spiegel reports of a pilot program organised by the Chamber of Crafts for Munich and Upper Bavaria. The program aims to address the shortage of medium-skilled specialised workers among small- and medium-sized companies, considered to be the engine that keeps the German economy humming. Spaniards between the ages of 18 and 30 possessed of job training and work experience are paired with employers in and around Munich that have job openings. The program reflects a growing awareness among companies and trade unions that they, too, have a stake in the integration of immigrant workers. The program hopes to place at least 21 Spanish workers by the end of its pilot phase at the end of 2013.
English: http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/bavarian-companies-set-sights ...