Italy: the Democratic Party trying to reunite unions after the break on the reform of the conventional system
Walter Veltroni, leader of the democratic party, met, last night, with the three trade unions, CGIL, Cisl and Uil, after meeting with the employers' association Confindustria on October 2. The...
Spain: renewal of the collective agreement of the insurance sector
Employers and trade unions in the mutual and insurance sector signed, on October 1, a new collective agreement which will be in force until 2011. Signed by the Unespa, the Amat and the Asecore for...
Belgium: Belgian employers say the right to strike is not an absolute right
During the national day of action launched by the three Belgian trade union confederations CSC, FGTB and CGSLB, employers deplored this initiative which paralyzes public transportation and...
Portugal : the new labor code will be approved at the latest on November 7, 2008
The bill was adopted on its first reading thanks to the vote of the socialist MPs in majority. The two right-wing parties abstained, while the communists and the far left voted against. Two steps...
Italy : union representation and work at the center of the UIL 7th conference
Created in 1950, the UIL is the third Italian union organization with over two million members and two levels of representation: 1° horizontally through its regional unions, 107 provincial...
Valeo: the EWC organized transnational collective action
The European works council of the French motor vehicle equipment manufacturer Valeo (almost 70.000 employees in Europe) decided, during a bureau meeting on September 11, to call all the European...
Great Britain: minimum wage increase on October 1
Hourly minimum wage for workers over 22 increased of 3.8% on October 1, 2008. It went from £5.52 (around €7) to £5.73 (around €7.30). Workers aged 18-21 will receive £4.77 (€6) instead of £4.60...
Netherlands: a bill to make companies responsible of the first six months of unemployment
The center-left governmental coalition wants to give companies the possibility to be responsible for the maintained payment of their dismissed employees for the first six months of unemployment...
Germany: Ver.di and the Postbank sign a “home agreement” while the trial of strength in the banking sector is escalating
On September 25, the Ver.di union and the management of the Postbank reached an agreement on a moderate wage increase and a strengthening of job security. This is not always the case in the rest...
GeoPost: agreement for the establishment of a European works council
The management of the GeoPost group (20.000 employees) which gathers the express parcel subsidiaries of the group La Poste present in 30 European countries (Chronopost International, DPD...)...
Great Britain/Poland: interunion cooperation agreement between the TUC, Solidarnosc and OPZZ
On September 25, 2008, in London, Brendan Barber, leader of the TUC, Janusz Sniadek, leader of Solidarnosc and Jan Guz, leader of the OPZZ, signed a cooperation agreement aimed at providing...
HP-EDS: European trade union federations denounce the restructuring plan announced in the framework of the merger
On the occasion of the extraordinary meeting of the EWCs of HP and of EDS, last September 25, 2008 in London, the European trade union federations EMF and Uni-Europa denounced job cuts announced...
Germany: former Siemens manager admits “buying” a union to block the IG Metall, the majority union
The trial of Wilhelm Schelsky, former head of the independent employee association AUB (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Unabhängiger Betriebsangehöriger) and of Johannes Feldmayer, former Siemens manager...
Italy: call center workers organize their first strike and national demonstration
The first national strike of call-center workers, organized by the SLC-CGIL, Fistel-Cisl, Uilcom unions and the basic unions (with the support of the organizations representing Alai Cisl, CPO Uil...
Ireland: social partners reach a draft agreement on national pay
After several months of controversy and ten days of almost uninterrupted bargaining, the government, the trade unions and the employers found an agreement, on September 17, on national pay. It is...
Saint-Gobain: additional agreement to the agreement establishing the EWC
On May 13, 2008, the management of the French group Saint-Gobain and the European trade unions Emcef and Feccia, as well as their affiliates, adopted an additional agreement to the agreement...
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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
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...
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
Germany: legal battle at Tesla ahead of works council election
The Frankfurt/Oder labour court has postponed a mid-November hearing in the case between the IG Metall union and Michaela Schmitz, employee representative and head of the works council at the...
6
France: generative AI and older workers central to BPCE’s skills management strategy
On 17 July 2025, BPCE and its trade unions signed a second agreement on jobs and career management within the banking group. The text places generative artificial intelligence at the core of its...