Just when the second-year evaluation of the Croke Park agreement (see the Collective Bargaining Newsletters of the first half of 2012) reported public sector reform is on track, an overtime conflict between the Ministry of Health and the trade unions sparked new debate over its interpretation. The 2010 agreement, reached after large IMF imposed salary and benefit cuts, secured no further pay cuts or forced lay-offs in the public sector in exchange for a massive reform that would have to save up to 3.3 billion euro annually. However, as health expenditure exceeded this year's budget by 145 million in the first quarter, the Health Service Executive (HSE) suggested reducing costs by cutting back on overtime, allowances and premium pay. Trade unions reacted outraged, arguing that allowances and overtime form a pivotal part of pay and are therefore protected by the agreement. Tensions within the government have arisen as some ministers defend and others dismiss the HSE plan. Unions warn that the combination of a further 9500 job cuts and a recruitment ceiling may put pressure on the quality of services in the upcoming two years and that they will fight any privatisation of public services to avoid increased public expenditure.
English:http://www.impact.ie/12/06/13/Croke-Park-agreement ...
http://www.siptu.ie/media/pressreleases2012/mainnews/fullstory,15990,en.html
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/0626/breaking3.html
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0626/1224318727011.html
http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/unions-will-not-accept-privatised ...
http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/pay-cutbacks-as-hse-overspends ...
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Like its Finnish counterpart (see under Finland), the Swedwatch has visited several Chinese factories that make products for Swedish companies.According to a new report from the labour rights watchdog the working conditions were bad, with the worst being the suppliers of sun chairs and air mattresses for Jula and Biltema. They found work places where people worked on contract, without breaks, and in bad lighting. Workers struggle with extremely long work days, dangerous machinery, and bad working environments.
English: http://www.thelocal.se/41672/20120627/
After a strike and several protests the government has started new negotiations with the trade unions on the general scheme of time off. An agreement has been signed that is more limited than the existing scheme. However, with this scheme employees keep the right to leave for urgent elderly help or caretaking with a maximum of three years. Also a career break for a maximum period of twelve months is included. Third element in the agreement is the possibility for elderly workers to change to a four-day week job.
French: http://www.csc-en-ligne.be/Actualite/Communiques/detail/nouvelles_regles.asp
Dutch: http://www.abvv.be/web/guest/news-nl/-/article ...
Unions leave board advisory committee Flanders temp staffing industry
June22, 2012
Trade unions ACV, ABVV andACLVB have left the advisory committee of the Flanders temporary staffing industry, arguing their input is not treated with the weight it deserves. Reports of discrimination, unsafe work places and indecent working conditions have put the unions on edge. The employers' organisation, Federgon, has expressed its wish for reconciliation. It stressed that the unions are a vital part of the committee and of the industry as a whole.
English: http://www.staffingindustry.com/eng/content/view/full/67262
Negotiations for a new collective agreement in the media sector (with approximately 12.000 workers) are in the fridge for months, due to a lack of a serious offer from the employer's side. In the meantime important trade segments are opting for another trade group. GPA-djp initiated a picket line on 27 June in front of the Economic Chamber in Vienna. One of the key demands is a minimum wage of €1,300.
German: http://www.oegb.at/servlet/ContentServer ... http://www.ots.at/presseaussendung/OTS_20120615 ...
Coal miners in the northern of Spain went on strike, staging protests in northern cities and Madrid. The actions started in response to a government announcement that state aid to the sector will be reduced by 64%. Trade unions CCOO and UGT have announced their support for the miners' strike that enjoyed 100% participation. Smaller actions involving blockades of mayor roads in the north were not authorised by the unions. The unions argue that the large scale retraction of public subsidies will kill the mining sector, which has already lost over 40,000 jobs in the last 20 years. Getting increasingly desperate, the miners have started to march on Madrid, vowing to walk the near 400 kilometre distance and hoping to be joined by more and more protesters along the way. Despite controversial actions and some clashes with the police, left wing parties, local and regional governments and trade union confederations across Europe have come out in support of the miners.
English: http://www.icem.org/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/5040-Spaina-s-Coal-Miners ...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-18466927
http://www.industriall-union.org/support-spanish-miners
http://www.expatica.com/es/news/spanish-news/spanish-miners-begin-march-on-madrid ...
http://elpais.com/elpais/2012/06/20/inenglish/1340199746_021519.html
A strike has led to the dismissal of 1000 workers in the Damp clinics, belonging to the Fresenius/Helios group. The strike was backed up by a decision of 86% of the workforce after negotiations for a new collective agreement failed. Ver.di announced new industrial action on 30 June against this provocative denial of the right to strike. Workers receive legal aid in the court cases that have been initiated to reverse the dismissals.
German:http://www.verdi.de/themen/geld-tarif ...
On 20 June trade union Tekgida-Is and the management of amylum starch corporation Tate & Lyle in Adana reached a settlement on wages and social benefits. The agreement comes after a 107 day strike that received support from international unions, whose affiliates were urged to send letters to Tate & Lyle requesting a proper social dialogue. It is the first time that workers at Tate & Lyle Ardana managed to significantly improve wages and working conditions through collective bargaining.
English: http://cms.iuf.org/?q=node/1766
According to the Labour and Finance ministries an agreement on the exact amount of the new levies has been reached in a meeting with organisations representing self-employed persons on 14June. Higher future pensions as well as more money flowing into Slovakia's social insurer are the two main benefits expected from an increase in payroll levies to be paid by self-employed.
English: http://spectator.sme.sk/articles/view/46778/3/agreement_reached_on_self ...
After 18 months of unsuccessful talks over working conditions, trade union UHM has announced industrial actions in health centres and hospitals. Radiographers, audiologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, medical laboratory scientists, dental technologists, dental hygienists, speech language pathologists, neurophysiology technologists and other workers will participate in the actions. Each group will follow specific directives of tasks they shall not perform for the duration of the strike. Emergency services will remain available at all times.
English: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20120625/local/industrial-action ...
http://www.independent.com.mt/news.asp?newsitemid=146528
On 25 June police raided the offices of education union Egitim Sen and the Confederation of Public Employees (KESK). The police also searched the houses of prominent union leaders, confiscating documents regarding their union work. Union leaders were detained in over 20 cities, including KESK President Lami Ozgen; the General Secretary of the Health and Social Services Union (SES), Mehmet Siddik Akin; the General Secretary of the All Municipality and Local Administrations workers' union (Tm Bel Sen), Izzet Alpergin; and the President of the Agriculture, Forest, Livestock Service Workers' Union (Tarim Orkam Sen), Metin Vuranok. Trade unions across Europe have condemned the attack on the unionists.
English:http://www.ei-ie.org/en/news/news_details/2214
Escalation of dispute after aviation striking ban becomes law
June13, 2012
President Abdullah Gl has signed the law banning strikes in the aviation sector that was approved by Parliament earlier, despite large scale protests from aviation union Hava-Is. Union members initiated a one-day slow-strike leading to the cancellation of nearly 200 flights last month, as reported in the May issue of CBN, after the government announced the amendment that would make strikes in the aviation sector illegal. In response Turkish Airlines has fired 305 cabin crew and technical staff who participated in the strike. Hava-Is will appeal both the legislation and the dismissals in court and has received widespread international support, amongst others from the ITF, AFL-CIO and the ITUC. In the meantime the airport security commission has banned all demonstrations and acts of protest. The protest originates in the failure to produce any collective agreement after plans to repeal existing social rights and wages.
English:http://www.itfglobal.org/press-area/index.cfm/pressdetail/7445
http://bianet.org/english/labor/139050-all-acts-of-protest-prohibited-at-ataturk ...
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/airline-staff-start-indefinite-strike ...
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-282156-union-appeals-thy-decision ...
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/law-banning-aviation-strikes-becomes ...
Public defenders demand higher wages
June5, 2012
Approximately 1000 public defenders went on a non-unionised strike this month demanding higher wages. The public defenders claim their wages used to be equal to those of judges and prosecutors but are now only one third of the former's.
English: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/public-defenders-protest-for-wages ...