News

Italy: 13 major companies sign a call-center code of conduct protocol
Signed on 04 May by both Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni and Minister of Economic Development Carlo Calenda this protocol defines the set of best social and business practices for customer service...
9 May 2017
EU: report on social protection access for non-standard and independent workers across 35 countries
Converging social protection schemes for non-standard workers towards those in operation for regular employees, establishing a minimum standard of social protection for every worker irrespective...
9 May 2017
Briefly, an ETUI report shows that workers in Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic are currently being paid even less well than in 2008 as compared to their German counterparts
Thus the conclusion of the working paper ‘Why central and eastern Europe needs a pay rise’ that was published on 08 May by the ETUC’s independent research and training center, the European Trade...
9 May 2017
France: decrees published on social dialogue forums in franchise networks and the social responsibilities of digital platforms
The two decrees are geared towards implementing reform to the country’s labour law (see article n° 9784). The first decree sets out the conditions for negotiating and setting up a common forum for...
8 May 2017
Argentina: automobile sector reaches wages agreement paving the way for the industrial sector, where pay rise talks are ongoing
Argentina’s automobile workers’ union Smata has signed a deal with Adefa, an association which brings together eleven manufacturing sites and international firms present in the country, on a 6.41%...
8 May 2017
France: Emmanuel Macron’s labour law programme
The new President of France, who was elected to the post on 7 May, has placed reforming the labour market among his first priorities.
8 May 2017
United Kingdom: Brexit threatens the rights of European workers, TUC warns
In a study published on 5 May, the Trade Union Congress sought to answer the question: ‘Could a bad Brexit deal reduce workers’ rights across Europe?’. The UK trade union centre puts forward the...
5 May 2017
In brief, New York bans employers from asking job applicants to reveal their salary history
On Thursday 4 May, New York's mayor signed the bill, adopted weeks previously, which has been presented as a means to fight discrimination. The city's Human Rights Commission will have the...
5 May 2017
In brief, the Indian IT services provider Infosys has announced that it is to recruit 10,000 workers in the US over the next two years
The announcement, made on 2 May, was greeted with a self-congratulatory tweet from President Trump. He put the move down to his 'Hire American' (see our article 10168) policy and reform to the...
5 May 2017
EU: for the Advocate General of the CJEU, German legislation granting the right to sit on in supervisory boards only to employees in Germany is not contrary to the principle of non-discrimination
The CJEU has to decide if the German 1976 Co-Determination Act results in discrimination since in contrast to staff employed in Germany, other employees neither have the right to vote nor the...
4 May 2017
Spain: agreement over the recruitment process in Volkswagen’s Spanish plant in Navarro
On 02 May, Volkswagen management and the on-site majority unions, UGT, CCOO, and CGC, ratified an ‘Employment Agreement’ that establishes selection and recruitment arrangements and prioritizes...
4 May 2017
France: Solvay signs an agreement on recognizing experience acquired during union and worker representation mandates
The agreement that was unanimously signed is an example, of which there are still only a few, of the implementation of the Law on social dialogue (17 August 2015 c.f. article No. 9208) that...
3 May 2017
Ireland: government to ban zero-hour contracts
On 02 May, the Irish government approved draft legislative proposals to tackle precarious work. The draft legislation especially aims to outlaw so-called zero-hour contracts (no guarantee on...
3 May 2017
Guidelines for investors to evaluate workers’ human rights and labor standards
In recognition of International Workers’ Day, on 01 May the Committee on Workers' Capital (CWC)* released its Guidelines for the Evaluation of Workers' Human Rights and Labor Standards. Produced...
3 May 2017
Brexit: the EU 27 agree on their negotiations guidelines for the UK’s exit from the EU
Gathered together in summit on 29 April the heads of the twenty-seven EU Member States (i.e. without the UK) adopted guidelines for managing the UK’s EU exit.
2 May 2017
Italy: budget offers boost to productivity bonuses
The budget adopted by Paolo Gentiloni’s government, which came into force on 24 April after publication in the government’s official journal, the Gazzetta Ufficiale, seeks to encourage company...
2 May 2017
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
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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
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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...
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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...