News brief

Austria: government announces measures to support employment and businesses
Arbeitsmarktpaket II), presented to the European Parliament on June 18, 2009, removes businesses’ contributions after the 7th month of partial unemployment. The maximum limit of this system...
Great Britain: British Airways asks staff to work for free for up to a month
d over 30,000 employees to take unpaid leave or work for free for one week up to one month to help the company survive, after it lost 401 million pounds (471 million euros) in one year. (Ref...
Netherlands: pension funds in the red zone
of the Netherlands announced that about twenty pension funds will have no other choice but to reduce their members’ payments next year. The government already left businesses free to leave...
Portugal: employees at Volkswagen Autoeuropa’s Palmela factory reject the flexibility agreement
europa’s Palmela factory, near Lisbon, rejected – with 51.6% of the votes – the new company agreement introducing more flexible working time. This brings back the spectrum of...
Axa: impending agreement renewing the insurer’s EWC
, French union organizations and the Uni European trade union – mandated by organizations from other countries – should sing an agreement renewing the agreement establishing...
France: four new recruitment premiums to boost youth employment
er the President announced an “Emergency Youth Employment Plan” of over one billion euros, four decrees, passed on June 15, 2009, temporarily introduce financial incentives for...
Germany: Verdi union says 9,000 jobs are in jeopardy at E.ON
ram announced in February by the largest energy group in Germany, E.ON, could cost almost one in ten jobs, the Verdi services union called E.ON’s employees for a giant demonstration...
Argentina: government forces the metal social partners to find a wage agreement
ounced by metalworkers, the Argentinean government adopted, on June 16, 2009, a directive forcing staff representatives and employers to conclude a wage agreement. On the absence of an agreement...
EU: the European social partners sign a new agreement on parental leave
– BusinessEurope, CEEP and UEAPME for employers and the ETUC for unions – signed, today June 18, 2009, the interprofessional agreement revising the 1995 agreement on parental leave...
Austria: the bill on the postal market stuck at the coalition
tal market should have been adopted by the Council of Ministers on June 9, 2009. However, disagreements appeared within the ruling coalition, notably about the definition of wage levels for...
Denmark: public employment service reform gives town councils more responsibility
adoption of the reform of public employment services, the LO trade union (whose members manage unemployment insurance funds) and the municipalities’ organization (Kommunernes Landsforening)...
Germany: Deutsche Post in turn hit by a scandal of illegal gathering of employees’ private data
inesses accused of violating the law on the protection of data keeps getting longer. On June 14, 2009, the Deutsche Post recognized that it illegally stored data on employees’ health status...
Areva: EWC opposed to the transfer of the T&D branch
il is worried about the risks of dismantlement of the group. Staff representatives multiply lobbying actions to the French public authorities but are having a hard time knowing more. The...
Italy: CGIL proposes popular initiative bill on the right to continuous education
‘s key trade union, the CGIL, presented a popular initiative bill on the right to continuous training. The text is aimed at catching up Italy’s structural delay in terms of continuous...
Portugal: new social security code
was permanently adopted on Friday, June 12. The text introduces higher employers’ social contributions for fixed-term contracts and subjects employers who appeal to “green...
Great Britain: Equality Bill to come into force in the fall 2010
bout giving employers six more months to prepare for the changes induced by the Equality Bill. Still under discussion, the bill should be adopted in early 2010. However, it isn’t unlikely...
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
EU: Omnibus Directive clears key milestone in European Parliament
On 13 October, the European Parliament’s position on the Omnibus Directive was approved by its Committee on Legal Affairs by 17 votes to six. Regarding due diligence rules, the report...
13 October 2025
2
mind RH analysis – Initial findings from CSRD social indicators
In 2025, for the first time, the universal registration documents of major European companies contain the sustainability reporting required by the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive...
3
Italy: European pay transparency directive, a major step forward for businesses
Italy’s labour market continues to suffer from limited pay transparency and a persistent gender pay gap. The forthcoming implementation of the EU pay transparency directive — still awaiting...
4
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
5
Germany: EU pay transparency directive to force companies to ‘get tough’
Germany introduced a pay transparency law in 2017, meaning companies are already somewhat familiar with the issue. However, the broader scope and stricter requirements of the EU directive, the...
24 October 2025
6
Germany: ‘active retirement’ law adopted to encourage seniors to remain in the workforce
On 15 October, Germany’s cabinet approved draft legislation on ‘active retirement‘, which is expected to pass swiftly through Parliament. The bill would allow people who continue...