Portugal: social week against austerity in public transport and services
al strikes in public transport. They are objecting to the restructuring plan in the offing for the sector. Key civil service unions also called for a demonstration on Saturday, November 12 in...
Great Britain: employers propose tax break for businesses recruiting young
Improve the place young people have on the labor market.  The key proposal of the report on boosting employment is a new tax break (£1,500) for businesses hiring jobseekers aged 16-24.  Currently...
4 November 2011
Italy: first masters in labor relations in the banking industry
Following the union agreement signed on July 28th* between the ABI employers’ association and the Fiba-Cisl, Fisac-CGIL and Uilca-Uil unions on the “opportunity” to improve the competences of...
Carrefour: amendment to the anticipation agreement establishing the EWC
The amendment to Carrefour’s EWC agreement provides that UNI Europa shall appoint a CICE Secretary and may appoint a representative invited to the meetings of the CICE and its steering committee...
Germany: innovating working time system for chemistry staff in eastern Länder
A system for Germany as a whole.  The chemistry social partners took nearly one year to reach an agreement on working time in “East chemistry,” meaning for the staff of businesses located in...
Netherlands: discrimination is commonplace in temporary agencies
The two researchers, Anne Backer and Evelien Loeters, got in touch with 187 agencies across the country, claiming that they were looking for staff for a call center that doesn’t exist.  Each time...
2 November 2011
Denmark: 2nd edition of the union campaign, “Last working day for women”
Organized, among others, by the FOA, HK and 3F unions, with the support of the National Network for Equal Pay, (Det Nationale Ligelønsnetværk, see our dispatch No.  080226), this campaign provides...
2 November 2011
Germany: 4% increase for rubber employees
The IG BCE union claims that, from January 1, 2012, the 25,000 employees in the rubber industry will get a first 3% increase, followed by a 1% increase on April 1, 2012.  They will also receive a...
Great Britain: UCATT construction workers’ union to elect general secretary with an internal war in the background
Four candidates became eligible to stand in the forthcoming election having obtained sufficient branch nominations to be placed on the ballot paper. These were the previous incumbent Alan...
United States: Occupy movement increasingly present in the field of working conditions
At the side of the Occupy movement for a month (see our dispatch No.  110600), trade unions are now getting the Occupants’ support, although the latter are rarely union members.  In Washington...
Skanska: the Swedish construction firm organized a Safety Week on all its sites in the world on October 17-23
he company organized, for its 52,000 employees worldwide, a Skanska Safety Week. This year, it was called “empowerment” and aimed to give employees a sense of responsibility to all the...
1 November 2011
Finland: new sectoral agreement in the technological industry
Training and division of the wage increases: the problem of transposing the framework agreement in the sectors.  The framework agreement signed on October 13th between the Akava, SAK and STTK...
Germany: Angela Merkel’s CDU is ready to break the taboo on universal minimum wage
Wages defined by the social partners.  Until now, the idea of universal minimum wage being introduced in Germany before the end of the Merkel administration in 2013 seemed completely unreal.  At...
United States: AT&T to give priority to the applications of retired former employees
The agreement reached by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and AT&T after two years of legal battle reminds that the only possible grounds for denying an application are the...
30 October 2011
Italy: banking social partners sign agreement supervising collective bargaining
The Dircredito-FD, Fabi, Fiba-Cisl, Fisac-CGIL, Sinfub, UGL Credito and Uilca union organizations and the ABI employers' organization signed, on October 24th, a framework agreement on collective...
Corporate practices: how the SICK AG sensor producer managed to reduce stress and noise in its offices
Keeping employees healthy.  Special award in 2005 for its ‘lifelong learning’ concept, award for its measures in favor of senior workers in 2006 and 2008, award for its equal opportunities policy...
28 October 2011
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
France: austerity measures proposed in social security financing bill for 2026
Limits on sick leave, the end of social security exemptions for apprentices, and the introduction of additional birth leave: the 2026 social security financing bill, presented to parliament on 14...
16 October 2025
2
Netherlands: ING cites AI as it plans to cut around 950 jobs
Dutch bank ING has informed the employment agency UWV that it may cut around 950 jobs by 31 December 2026. In its notification on 20 October, the lender said the planned reductions stem partly...
30 October 2025
3
France: Decathlon introduces a ‘duty to respect others’ right to disconnect’
A right-to-disconnect agreement was signed in late September for the French arm of the Decathlon sports retail group. It sets out a "duty to respect others’ right to disconnect" and provides...
14 November 2025
4
United Kingdom largely retained within scope of EWCs despite Brexit, study shows
A study published this month by the Institute for Economic and Social Research, the French trade union research organisation, examined how the involvement of British representatives in European...
5
Romania: collective agreement extended to entire insurance sector
On 3 November, Romania’s National Tripartite Council for Social Dialogue approved the extension of the collective labour agreement signed on 23 May by the Confederation of Employers in the...
6
Italy: new collective agreement for managers in tertiary sector
On 5 November, the ManagerItalia union and the employers’ association Confcommercio renewed the collective agreement for managers in Italy’s tertiary, distribution and services...