EU: European Trade Union Confederation calls for efforts to protect jobs amid coronavirus pandemic

Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has infected over half a million people and led to around 30,000 deaths across the globe, 18 European Union countries as well as Norway and the UK have taken some measures to protect the jobs and wages of workers who have been temporarily laid off or had their hours reduced.  The findings come from a study conducted by the European Trade Union Institute for Research and published on 27 March by the European Trade Union Confederation.
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The warning from European trade unions is stark. “Decisions that are made now will determine if the EU can avoid the Covid-19 crisis becoming a great recession and unemployment crisis,” the European Trade Union Confederation writes in a briefing note on the coronavirus pandemic. The document, dated 24 March, sets out measures adopted by EU countries or social partners located therein in order to soften the impact of the crisis on the labour market. Far from providing a comprehensive overview, g

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