Mexico: increasing number of underemployed skilled workers
Labor market statistics show that 7% of Mexican workers are looking for a second job. Among skilled workers, who have an average or upper education level, the number of "underemployed" increased...
United States: auto bailout leads to trial of strength
The State to the rescue. This amount would be taken – as loans spread on 7 years – from a $25 billion fund created in September to improve gas consumption standards in the automobile industry...
9 December 2008
Portugal: the VW Autoeuropa factory adopts a new company agreement to maintain employment
The management and workers of the Autoeuropa de Palmela automotive assembly plant adopted a new company agreement which will be in force until the end of 2011. Renegotiated during the crisis, the...
Spain: Michelin’s management and unions sign an agreement avoiding job cuts
The inter-center works council and the management of Michelin Spain signed an "exceptional framework agreement 2009" to cope with the bad economic prospects and adapt production to market needs...
China: analysis of the new labor dispute law and its impact after six months of its application
The law on mediation and arbitration of labor disputes, adopted on December 29, 2007, entered into force on May 1, 2008, and brought about major changes to the previous mechanism for settling...
Great Britain: TUC demands additional measures for the respect of minimum wage
The UK's Trades Union Congress (TUC) has called on the Low Pay Commission (LPC) - which is going to issue recommendations to the government in early 2009 - to propose new measures to improve the...
Germany: the train drivers’ union (GDL) demands a 6.5% wage increase
The three train drivers' unions - Transnet, GDBA and the GDL - presented to the Deutsche Bahn, on December 1, 2008, in Berlin, their official claims before the opening of the renegotiation of the...
Germany: Ver.di and Deutsche Post end their wage conflict in two German postal subsidiaries
After two warning strikes, the services' union Ver.di and Deutsche Post reached, on December 2, 2008, a wage agreement which ends a conflict which lasted for several months in two subsidiaries of...
Poland: TP SA phone company signs a new social pact
The management of the phone company TP SA (France Telecom group) and the company's 18 unions signed, on November 27, 2008, a new version of the Social Pact for 2009-11. This new text, which will...
Latin America: ILO reports slow wage growth
Latin America is the region in the world which registered the slowest income growth since 1995, as pointed out by an ILO report which analyzes wage evolution in the region. In five countries...
France: adoption of the Labor Income Act
The Labor Income Act was adopted by the Parliament on November 27, as an answer to the decreasing purchasing power of French employees. We are presenting a review of its main provisions which...
France: seniors’ employment at the center of the Social Security Finance Act 2009
On November 27, the Parliament permanently adopted the 2009 Social Security Finance Act. Several provisions concern the seniors' employment and companies directly. The goal is to encourage seniors...
Solvay: the management and EWC sign a charter on sustainable development and corporate social responsibility
Contribute to the emergence of a corporate vision on sustainable development. With this charter, EWC members expressed their will to the exercise of Social Corporate Responsibility in the...
Switzerland: unions defeated on flexible retirement age
Swiss unions suffered a major defeat on Sunday, November 30th, during the referendum on the introduction of a flexible retirement scheme for low incomes. Indeed, 58% voted against the possibility...
France: focus on the reform of the representativeness of union organizations
ocracy on August 20, 2008 completely disrupted the notion of union representativeness by ending the one automatically enjoyed the 5 main trade unions (CGT, CFDT, CFTC, CGT-FO and CFE-CGC –...
Netherlands: new limits to bosses’ bonuses
When the Finance Act 2009 was voted on November 26, 2008, the Dutch Parliament decided to set new limits to managers' remuneration. Bonuses related to the companies' results on the stock exchange...
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
Oliver Dietrich (IG Metall): “The advent of AI can be a means of deepening social partnership within companies”
In Germany, trade unions want to influence how AI is deployed in companies. Oliver Dietrich is an AI project manager at the regional office of the IG Metall trade union in North Rhine-Westphalia...
2
EU: social partners split over competitiveness and action on job quality
The European Trade Union Confederation and BusinessEurope have published their response to the consultation document on the European Commission's upcoming EU quality jobs initiative. The two...
4 February 2026
3
Germany: collective bargaining negotiations begin in chemical industry
Collective bargaining talks in Germany’s chemical and pharmaceutical industries are due to open this week, covering nearly 580,000 employees across around 1,700 companies. With the sector facing...
3 February 2026
4
Italy: new generational renewal agreement penned at UniCredit
The agreement signed on 30 December by UniCredit, Italy’s second-largest banking group, with the Fabi, First-Cisl, Fisac-Cgil, Uilca and Unisin trade unions aims to continue generational...
5
France: social partner talks extend far beyond contractual terminations
After a false start on 3 December, French social partners resumed talks on 7 January 2026 on potential changes to the unemployment insurance agreement, including the rules governing compensation...
12 January 2026
6
EU: banking sector social partners commit to combating violence and harassment
On 15 January, the trade union federation UNI Europa Finance and three employers’ associations in the banking sector signed a joint statement on preventing violence and harassment in the...