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EU: a collective agreement transposing a EU directive can apply to employees who are not union members
Whereas the Court of Justice gave a rough ride to Scandinavian social relations systems with the Viking and Laval cases, it recognized their specificities in a decree on December 18, 2008...
Portugal: Tyco Electronics appeals to partial unemployment for six months for part of its staff
The factory making electronic components for cars, Tyco Electronics of Evora, south Portugal, decided to appeal to partial unemployment for six months. Negotiations helped reduce the staff...
Italy: EDS and HP unions announce new strike
On January 8, 2009, unions were disappointed when they came out of the meeting with representatives from Electronics Data Systems (EDS) and Hewlett Packard (HP) Italia about the restructuring plan...
Great Britain: government announces new financial incentives to recruit difficult publics
As of April 2009, job placement agencies will be able to award employers who recruit and commit to train job seekers who have been out of work for six months or longer a financial incentive of up...
Spain: the UGT union demands a revised tax system for economic redundancies benefits in the name of equality
Faced with more and more collective redundancy procedures (EREs), the UGT union wants an emergency reform of the tax status for layoff pay to ensure fair treatment for those who loose their job...
Netherlands: works councils directly informed by the labor inspectorate
From now on, the labor inspectorate itself will inform works councils of the results of its investigations on working conditions, pay levels and illegal labor. Piet Hein Donner, Minister of Labor...
Germany: Gesamtmetall wants the government to give more support to “employment pacts” signed in businesses
The tariff agreement on job security (Tarifvertrag Beschäftigungssicherung) in force in the metallurgy and electronics sector, enabling companies facing a dropping demand to reduce working time...
Denmark: companies’ social commitment can be a burden for employees
Danish businesses are making more and more room for diversity, but this commitment can also be a burden for employees. This is the observation that came out of the annual report of the National...
12 January 2009
Italy: focus on the Mobilità procedure
The Mobilità procedure was introduced by Law 223 of July 23, 1991 to solve problems related to the lack of legislation on mass layoffs, following European Directive No. 129/1975 reconciling...
EU: the Commission consults the European social partners on second-hand smoke at work
The European Commission launched a consultation to improve the legal framework on the prevention of workers' exposure to environmental tobacco smoke. It reminds its detrimental effects and...
Spain: the administrative authorization granted to Renault to use partial unemployment angers unions
The Ministry of Labor allowed the plan for temporary employment regularization (ERE) presented by the French car manufacturer. It will affect Renault's four Spanish factories and 10.311 employees...
Netherlands: reduced working time for all Nedcar employees
All of Nedcar's employees are going to be subject to the ATV (Arbeidstijdverkorting, working time reduction system). This is a first since the system was introduced at the end of November, to...
Great Britain: ACAS launches consultation to make improve the representation of workers
In December 2008, the ACAS (Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service, which notably helps improving industrial relations) published two documents for consultation in an attempt to modernize...
Italy: Fiat sends its white-collar workers to partial unemployment
As announced in December (see our dispatch No. 081029), Fiat is sending some of its white-collar workers to partial unemployment. The employees concerned are the 1.200 workers of the Orbassano and...
Italy: government proposes to reduce working time to prevent layoffs
“Fix employment within the company”. According to the Confindustria employers’ association, 600.000 jobs (1 million according to unions) would be in jeopardy because of the crisis. In this tense...
EU: UNI-Europa Finance increases coordination for national bargaining and defines a procedure for transnational agreements
The economic context is driving the European sectoral union federation UNI-Europa Finance to improve its Strategy on Transnational Collective Bargaining at national level. For that purpose, it...
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1
France: Yves Rocher convicted of breach of duty of vigilance for infringement of freedom of association
The specialised chamber of the Paris Judicial Court convicted Yves Rocher on 12 March for breaching its duty of vigilance. The group was sued by Turkish employees dismissed in 2018 by a subsidiary...
12 March 2026
2
Spain: business support package to tackle the economic impact of the Middle East conflict
The Spanish government approved a series of measures on 20 March to support companies facing rising energy prices. In return, these businesses are prohibited from making redundancies for economic...
23 March 2026
3
EU: Council adopts position on simplifying AI rules
The Council of the EU approved its position on 13 March regarding the “omnibus regulation” proposal, published last November by the Commission to simplify the AI Act. Confirming the...
20 March 2026
4
Germany: a corporate group supports local political engagement via its “Democracy Charter”
Large corporations in the Hesse region, surrounding Frankfurt, are defending local democracy by enabling employees to volunteer in local public life through an initiative dubbed the "Democracy...
11 March 2026
5
United States: Coca-Cola subsidiary sued by the administration over women-only event
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced on 18 February that it is launching federal proceedings against Coca-Cola Beverages Northeast for “sex-based...
6 March 2026