News brief

Italy: government, social partners and regions sign agreement on guidelines for training in 2010
ramework agreement on training in 2010 – signed last week between the government, the social partners and the regions – affect the reorientation of training for jobseekers, workers in...
Great Britain: British Airways employees vote for a new strike
on February 22: 80.7% of the 11,700 cabin crew at British Airways decided to strike to protests against the management’s unilateral cost cutting policy. Unite is hoping that this threat is...
GDF Suez: European agreement on job and skills planning
F Suez, the special negotiating body and the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) signed, on February 23, a European agreement on job and skills planning. This agreement, drawing a...
Great Britain: government proposes banning the deduction of travel expenses from minimum wage to protect low-paid agency workers
ndment to the Minimum Wage Act in order to ensure that employers who pay minimum wage won’t deduct travel or subsistence expenses from this amount – a widespread practice among...
Brazil: the debate on working time cuts is at a standstill
g pressure so MPs will vote the bill implementing the shorter work week (from 44 to 40 hours). However, employers’ representatives squarely refuse. The MPs, acting as mediators, propose...
Germany: Lidl wants minimum wage in retail trade
r in Germany, Lidl, requested, in an open letter published on February 17, 2010 in the German press, that the social partners in retail trade, a sector that employs 2.9 million people, 930,000 of...
Netherlands: bill forces employers to inform unions after 21 leaves negotiated with employees
or Labor and Social Affairs announced, on February 17, a new amendment to the law on information in the event of mass layoffs. Businesses will have to inform unions as they do for mass layoffs...
Italy: renewal at the center of the 14th Congress of the Uil’s metalworkers’ federation, Uilm
and “key decisions for the defense and improvement of working conditions,” including proposals on the reform of representativeness by the summer, the renewal of the union organization...
Germany: metal partners sign “historical” collective agreement on job security with a minimum wage increase
l and Gesamtmetall (employers) in the “pilot region,” North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) announced, on Thursday, February 18 in Düsseldorf, that they reached an agreement on wages and...
EU: retail employment market by 2020
ng into the European Commission’s sectoral analyses as part of its strategy, “New Jobs for New Skills.” By 2020, the employment market in retail will depend on the development of...
EU: new skills and management of the economic crisis at the heart of the 2010-2011 work program of the commerce social partners
ommerce sector published, on February 17, their joint work program for 2010-2011. Training and adaptation to new skills need will be at the center of social dialog. They will also pay special...
France: Labor Ministry introduces “name and shame” method to encourage businesses to deal with the issue of stress
bor Ministry recently ranked businesses with more than 1,000 employees according to their efforts to prevent psychosocial risks. In October 2009, after the wave of suicides at France Telecom, the...
Great Britain: heating and ventilation engineers to enjoy agreements signed between unions and electrical firms
the Electrical Contracting Industry, which gathers employers in the electrical sector, and Unite, the key construction union, defines standard working conditions for the trade. This structure is...
Germany: the small Confederation of Christian Unions (CGB) signs an “exemplary” collective agreement in the temporary sector
ve agreement in the temporary sector between the Confederation of Christian Unions (CGB-CGZP) and the Federation of Small Temporary Employers (AMP) is an affront for the large trade union...
EU: publication of calls for proposals 2010 to support social dialog
ished three calls for proposal to support social dialogue with the co-funding of actions launched by the social partners. The call for proposals on information, consultation and the participation...
France: summary of the social partners’ work at cross-industry level
ations are still working on the social projects started in 2009. The key fieldworks of these negotiations, which are going to last until next spring, include employment, the modernization of...
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
Germany: government seeks to facilitate immigration of skilled Indian workers
During a visit to India earlier this week, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz addressed the strategic importance of attracting Indian workers to Germany, signing a series of cooperation agreements...
2
France: 2026 budget expected to maintain employer contribution relief
On 19 January 2026, French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu decided to invoke Article 49.3 of the Constitution to pass France's 2026 budget without a vote in the National Assembly. Three days...
3
EU: Cyprus unveils its six-month presidency programme
Cyprus has set out its priorities for its six-month presidency of the Council of the EU. On the social front, the centre-right government will focus on the Union of Skills, which aims to boost...
4
Informal economy and slow wage growth hamper decent work, ILO says
The International Labour Organisation published its Employment ans Social Trends 2026 on 14 January. It anticipates unemployment stabilising in 2026 and employment growth of 1%, driven by...