All articles

Italy: collective agreement in gas and water sector renewed
Following 16 months of tense negotiations, an agreement was reached on 18 May between trade unions and employer organisations to renew the collective agreement for the gas and water sector. The...
Japan: businesses responding to a continuing manpower shortage
In spite of moves to employ older workers and to rationalize human resources, Japan’s manpower shortage continues to worsen and is plunging the country’s labor market into a dilemma at a time when...
Schneider Electric: a European agreement on the anticipation and development of competencies and employment with respect to its business strategy
On 18 May the world leader in energy management and automation solutions together with the European union federation, IndustriAll Europe, signed an agreement with that ‘sets out the minimum shared...
Great Britain: Conservative party election manifesto addresses ‘Soft’ Brexit, controlled immigration, and new rights for workers
On 18 May Tory Prime Minister Theresa May presented her party’s election manifesto ahead of the 08 June polls. Should the Tories win, and the polls are overwhelmingly pointing to this outcome...
Greece: vote over a new agreement as well as the country’s fourteenth pension reform
On 18 May Greece’s parliament votes on an agreement that was concluded during the Eurogroup in Malta on 07 April. In it Greece signs up to a 2% reduction in expenditure between 2019 and 2020...
Briefly: chemical sector agreement in Belgium
Planet Labor, 18 May 2017, nº10214 - www.planetlabor.com
Great Britain: real wages fall for the first time since 2014
Average weekly income (excl. bonuses) rose 2.1% in March in the UK, which is just below the current inflation rate of 2.3%. This is the first fall in real wages in three years. Unions are worried...
Germany: metals workers seek more independence over deciding their working time
On 16 May and ahead of the metal sector collective negotiations that are scheduled to start this autumn, IG Metall president Jörg Hoffmann presented the results of the second part of the ‘giant’...
OECD National Contact Point for France accepts a complaint filed by a US trade union against the Natixis banking group
In an landmark case, US employees at a California-based luxury hotel have filed a complaint against Natixis, the US subsidiary of which, AEW Capital Management, oversees the site in question...
17 May 2017
Spain: those in precarious occupations mobilize to defend their rights
Independent freelancers, workers on very short-term contracts, and ad hoc workers operating in sectors that are well under the trade unions radars are turning to social networks to mobilize...
United States: US bosses earn 347 times more than the average rank and file
An AFL-CIO study has roundly criticized the growing pay gap between big stock market quoted company CEOs and regular employees. The labor group is calling for more transparence within businesses...
Brexit : an interview with Elena Crasta, the UK Trade Union Congress’ Brussels-based European officer
On 5 May, the TUC published a worrying study on the negative impact that Brexit appears set to have on working rights of workers in Europe (see article n° 10192). Is the view put forward by the...
15 May 2017
Italy: law on Smart Working and independent working is definitively adopted
At its final reading on 10 May, Italy’s Senate finally adopted the law on measures that both protect independent workers and for the first time address Smart Working (flexibility over working time...
11 May 2017
Denmark: government looks to simplify employment regulations and better take into account new labor market realities
Denmark’s government is seeking to better take changes in the labor market into account by simplifying employment regulations and improving its appraisal of new forms of independent work so as to...
India: update on recent labor law reforms
Since coming to power in 2014, Narendra Modi’s government has been trying to carry out one of its major campaign promises that is to completely overhaul India’s labor law situation although...
11 May 2017
Germany: chemicals sector’s social partners in Germany’s northeast adopt a landmark agreement on working time
At the close of the fifth round of negotiations on 09 May in Potsdam and true to their reputation as innovative social partners, the chemical union IG BCE together with the employers’ organization...
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1
United Kingdom: government launches consultation on AI and data protection rules
L’info. Le gouvernement britannique a lancé, du 15 juillet au 9 septembre 2026, une consultation afin d’identifier les dispositifs juridiques, techniques et de gouvernance...
28 August 2026
2
EU: social partners set out position on guidelines for the sustainability due diligence directive
The news. Following the final adoption of the omnibus directive in February, the European Commission launched a consultation in June aimed at guiding it in drafting guidelines on the application...
28 August 2026
3
Import bans on forced labor products are multiplying
Under pressure from new US tariffs, many countries have presented texts in recent weeks to ban the import of products made with forced labor. A real breakthrough for workers' rights or a mere...
9 September 2026
4
Germany: a “simplification” proposal for the Corporate Governance Code
In early August, the Government Commission presented proposals to reform the Deutscher Corporate Governance Kodex (DCGK), Germany’s Corporate Governance Code. The proposals are primarily aimed at...
31 August 2026
5
France: EDF served formal notice for failure to comply with its sustainability due diligence obligations
The news. On 23 September, Greenpeace France announced that it had served EDF with a formal notice for failure to comply with its sustainability due diligence obligations due to the risks of harm...
24 September 2026
6
Slovakia: a bill to “clarify” personal data protection measures
The news. The Slovak government approved a bill on personal data protection on August 26, 2026. This text aims to clarify existing regulations regarding employees’ rights and...
7 September 2026