Sweden: a commission delivers proposals to the government to safeguard the specific role of trade unions with regard to EU requirements
Proposals made by the Swedish commission. The commission first acknowledged that the trade unions had gone too far in the Laval case, as their action was motivated not by Laval’s refusal to adhere...
Germany: the Bundestag ratifies the law on employees’ capital interest
More tax aids for employees. To improve employees’ access to the companies’ capital, the new law provides for the creation of investment funds to which employers and employees may contribute...
Germany: the IG BAU, the building union, demands a 6% wage increase
Full order books. The order books of the sector’s companies are full until at least mid-2009. In addition, they should benefit from the €50 billion recovery plan presented in mid-January by the...
Netherlands: sharp drop in the bonuses of bosses and CEO’s of listed firms
The lot of these bosses is nonetheless enviable, considers this newspaper. The average salary of a company chief has a fixed part of € 1 million  with an annual maximum bonus of € 1 million  and a...
Germany: IG Metall stabilizes its members
In 2008, for the first time in 15 years, the IG Metall, the largest union in Germany with 2.3 million members, put a temporary end to the erosion of its strength. According to an assessment...
Italy: collective bargaining reformed
A "historical" agreement on the reform of the unique conventional system for the private and the public sector was signed on January 22, 2009 in Rome between the government and the social...
EADS: EWC agreement revised based on the new EWC directive
roup and the members of the special negotiating body revised, on October 30, 2008, the agreement for the establishment of the EWC of October 23, 2000. The signatory parties adapt the text to the...
SAS: the airline signed an agreement with unions to reduce costs
On January 11, 2009, Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS), which has two head offices, one in Sweden and one in Denmark, signed an agreement with its unions on a new collective agreement to help the...
Spain: Competitiveness Plan to help auto businesses face downturn
Planet Labor, January 23, 2009, No. 090075 – www.planetlabor.com
Brazil: one in three businesses prepares layoffs for the beginning of the year
Cutting short rumors and assessments from independent sources, the Brazilian Ministry of Labor finally recognized that a record in terms of job cuts was reached at the end of 2008. According to...
Germany: Lufthansa prepares for warning strikes
After breaking off, on January 16, 2009, the 3rd negotiation round with Lufthansa, the independent flight attendants' union, Ufo (Unabhängige Flugbegleiter Organisation e. V.), warned that it was...
Portugal: unions hit by the crisis too
Portuguese unions are directly hit by the crisis because of its impact on employees' contributions. The CGTP (General Confederation of Workers, the largest union in Portugal) is expecting a 1.9%...
Netherlands: banks are reviewing their wage policy
The financial and economic crisis which led the State to step in to support the sector has consequences on wage policy, particularly managers' pay. Banks keep announcing reduced remuneration or...
Rio Tinto-Alcan: EWC informed of 2.000 job cuts in Europe
This meeting of the EWC follows the announcement of the restructuring plan announced on December 10, 2008. Concerning employment, it provides for 14.000 job cuts worldwide, including 5.500...
Thales: transnational bargaining on professional development
After Areva and Schneider Electric, the French group Thales (68.000 employees), world leader in mission-critical information systems for the Aerospace, Defense and Security markets, is opening...
ArcelorMittal: the EWC monitors local bargaining for voluntary leaves
On December 15, Arcelor's management and the secretariat of the EWC stated, in a joint declaration, that they wanted "to strengthen the social dialogue national and local level in relation to...
Most viewed articles of the month on mind HR
What readers clicked on the most last month.
What readers clicked on the most last month.
1
Catherine Chavanier (CDC Habitat): “Social dialogue on AI facilitates its deployment”
In February, CDC Habitat (10,500 employees) signed a two-year framework agreement governing social dialogue on AI. Catherine Chavanier, HR Director of the subsidiary of CDC (Caisse des dépôts et...
2
France: La Poste to launch negotiations for an AI agreement
Following the lead of firms such as Axa, Syensqo globally, and more recently CDC Habitat, La Poste group management will open negotiations on an AI regulation agreement during the first half of...
3
United Kingdom: launch of consultation on protection against detriment for industrial action
The British government launched a public consultation on 26 February regarding new protections for workers against "detriment" related to industrial action, scheduled to take effect in October...
12 March 2026
4
France: bioMérieux’s new disability agreement pivots towards mental health
The news. On 6 January 2026, bioMérieux—an in vitro diagnostics specialist employing 4,400 people in France—signed a new four-year agreement “relating to the employment...
5
Germany: controversial collective bargaining compliance act adopted
On 26 February, the Bundestag approved the Tariftreuegesetz (collective bargaining compliance act), aimed at strengthening collective agreements and tackling social dumping by tying certain public...
26 February 2026
6
Germany: a wave of redundancy plans in the automotive sector
The latest financial results presented in early 2026 by major German car manufacturers show sharp declines. This collapse in profits has triggered the announcement or confirmation of massive job...
16 March 2026