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Romania: tough minimum wage negotiations
No consensus on minimum wage.  Despite a new meeting earlier this week, the trade unions and representatives from the Romanian Finance Ministry haven’t reached an agreements on the minimum wage...
PPR: group takes European commitment on the quality of life at work and the prevention of work-related stress
Philippe Decressac, HR senior vice-president of the group, “is happy with this endorsement” and pointed out that “more than psycho-social risks, the point was the quality of life at work and the...
Brazil: alcoholism is no longer a valid ground for dismissal
Coming to work after consuming excessive amounts of alcohol is no longer a valid ground for dismissal in Brazil.  This is the amendment made by the Brazilian Senate to the Labor Code.  The Chamber...
United States: Human Rights Watch bashes European firms’ anti-union behavior in the US
Most corporations Human Rights Watch is pointing the finger at have endorsed the industrial relations guidelines of the OECD.  They endorse the core labor standards of the ILO and the United...
3 September 2010
Italy: Confindustria and Federmeccanica are willing to amend the metal CCN so Fiat will remain in the employers’ organization
Suspense in the Italian industry before Federmeccanica’s management meets on September 7th and announces what the metal employers’ organization chose to keep Fiat from leaving and allow for the...
United States: American unions gather to prepare the November elections
A new partnership.  For the AFL CIO and SEIU, these political actions aren’t new.  The two organizations have the support of the Center for Responsive Politics, specialized in lobbying, and the...
Germany: controversy about the bill on the protection of employees’ private data
No hidden cameras.  Taking account of the criticism introduced, in June, by the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB, see our dispatch No. 100506), the Department for Home Affairs presented a...
Austria: unions demand drastic overtime limit
Talks on flexible working time and the management of overtime in Austria have been going on for over a year (see our dispatches No. 091007 and 100291) and have already greatly tainted the social...
Great Britain: government questions employees’ right to request time to train
Short consultation.  Within the framework of this new policy (see our dispatch No. 100044), the training requested by the employee should be good for the company and the employee.  When they...
Netherlands: still no coalition three months after the general election
Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party (PPV) is now setting the political rules in the Netherlands: it seems impossible to govern without it, because of its election results, but equally hard to govern with...
Italy:government presents plans for labor market reform
This plan follows the line of the “White book on the future of the social system,” approved by the Council of Ministers on May 6, 2009 (see our dispatch No. 090541).
Great Britain: fixed retirement age to be scrapped on October 1, 2011
What is it?  The Employment Equality (Age) Regulation, enforced in October 2006, allows employers to part with their employees when they are 65, regardless of the circumstances.  The Regulation...
International: metal unions seek to improve strategy in Latin America
The meeting held on August 18 and 19 brought together representatives from the ASMIRA and UOM (Argentina), CNTM-FS and CMN-CUT (Brazil), and SITIMM (Mexico).  Manuel Campos, the IG-Metall...
Germany: IG-Metall demands 6% wage increase in the steel industry
Union says it’s a problem of equity.  Oliver Buckhard, leader of the IG-Metall in North-Rhine Westphalia, explained his union’s requirements by reminding that steel employees gave a lot during the...
Suspending the information thread until September 1st
The information thread will be suspended from the evening of July 30th to September 1st. You can still access the database over that period. The entire team wishes you a very good summer.
30 July 2010
Germany: the conditions for a sectoral agreement on minimum wage in regional rail transport are taking shape
After the second bargaining round for collective agreements at the Deutsche Bahn and in the rail industry, it is still impossible to say foretell the amount of wage increases for the 165,000...
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1
France: sectors feel economic slowdown to differing degrees
The latest data on France’s occupational sectors (branches professionnelles), covering the year 2023, show how employment trends are shaping workplace dynamics. After a more favourable period for...
2
Germany: apprenticeship openings fall sharply in manufacturing and chemicals
From 1 January 2026, Dutch collective agreements for temporary employment agencies will alter the employment conditions of temp workers. Agencies will be required to pay these workers at least the...