The Serbian Government’s Team for Social Inclusion and Poverty Reduction has defined the country’s absolute poverty income to be €104 per month. Poverty has decreased a little since 2017, by 0.1%, but half a million citizens are still unable to provide for their basic needs. Poverty is even more rife in rural than in urban areas; the ratio between the poor living in the cities and villages remains at 4.8% to 10.4%.
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[close]According to recent figures from the Research Council of Norway, the measured effects of trade union membership on wages are: at a workplace where 0-25% of employees are union members, the wages are 6% higher for women and 8% higher for men as compared to workplaces without union members. Where 25-50% of employees are in a union, wages are 14% higher for women and 15% higher for men than in workplaces where there is no union. The situation is even better where 50-100% of employees are part of a union, because wages are 23% higher for women and 18% higher for men.
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[close]On 1 November two freelance photojournalists won a lawsuit against DPG Media (formerly De Persgroep). The court rule stated that the rates DPG pays are not fair. The judge ordered to increase the rates by 50% (to 0.21 cents per word and €65 per photo) respectively. DPG Media therefore has to pay these two freelancers extra for work they did in 2018. The Dutch Association of Journalists and the Dutch Association of Photojournalists have supported the journalists in this lawsuit. The European Federation of Journalists applauded the courage and persistence of the photojournalists, particularly as this court ruling will have an impact beyond the borders of the Netherlands.
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[close]Sanitation workers in the Maltepe municipality of Istanbul launched an indefinite wildcat strike last month. The workers said provisions of their collective bargaining agreement were not being respected, and they denounced layoffs imposed by the municipal administration. Along with the Maltepe municipal workers, workers in other municipalities – including Üsküdar, Ataşehir, İstanbul, Aliağa, İzmir and Aydın, as well as hundreds of workers at factories elsewhere – are simultaneously striking or protesting against austerity and layoffs.
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[close]The campaign to have the ‘right to disconnect’ enshrined in law is gathering pace. Led principally by the bankers’ trade union, the Financial Services Union (FSU), the campaign seeks legislation regulating excessive out-of-hours contact between employers and staff via email, messaging app or phone.
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[close]Women in the European Union still earn on average 16% less than men, a slight improvement from last year's 16.2%. It marks the day when women symbolically stop getting paid compared to their male colleagues for the same job. Nine out of ten Europeans women and men think that it is unacceptable that women are paid less than men for the same job.
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[close]The law on occupational health and safety is expected to be adopted by the end of this year, but it has not been approved by the government and Parliament, yet. One of the main challenges is the lack of consensus in the Economic and Social Council, where both representative unions - CATUS and TUC Nezavisnost - were against the government/employers’ proposal.
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[close]A report released by the Ministry of Finance estimates that the average monthly salary in the country will reach about € 767 in 2021. According to local news the ministry predicts that the average salary in the country will reach € 715 next year, and € 818 in 2022. Bulgaria is at the bottom of the EU population income list. In 2018, the average hourly labour cost in Bulgaria is the lowest in the European Union, equal to € 5.40.
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[close]Disillusioned university workers have voted in support of strike action on campuses across the UK following separate ballots over pensions, pay and working conditions. The union urged universities to address members’ concerns and warned that if they failed to do so strike action was “inevitable”, potentially disrupting the studies of about one million students.
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[close]IndustriAll European Trade Union and IndustriALL Global Union stand in solidarity with metalworkers in Italy that are today engaged in a nation-wide strike action called for jointly by the affiliates FIM-CISL, FIOM-CGIL and UILM. Two-hour long workers’ assemblies are held in each workplace to discuss with workers urgently needed policies for a sustainable future of industry. Core demands include the need to end industrial and employment crises, to revive economic and social growth, to restart investments, to increase wages, to respect fundamental workers’ rights. The strike comes at a time of great uncertainty about the future of the metal industry in Italy.
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