News

EU: several texts face uncertainty ahead of elections in Spain, which takes rotating presidency
Spain assumed the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union on 1 July, ahead of an early general election in the country later this month. The result of the election remains...
3 July 2023
Great Britain: electric goods retailer Currys is providing paid gender reassignment leave
On 26 June, UK white goods retailer Currys (32,000 staff worldwide and at least 10,000 in the UK) announced it was offering its UK employees undergoing gender reassignment, access to an additional...
29 June 2023
France: Renault invests in employee retraining initiatives in response to the scheduled demise for the internal combustion engine vehicle  
In 2021 the French multinational automaker launched its ‘Refactory’ circular economy factory at its historic site in Flins, near Paris. Emblematic of the auto-sector’s transformation as a result...
Société Générale to offer digitalisation related guarantees and social coverage to its employees worldwide
On 23 June, French banking group Société Générale renewed, for a second time, the global agreement on employee rights that it initially signed with UNI Global Union in 2015 and again in 2019 on...
27 June 2023
Germany: law passed to create ‘apprenticeship guarantee’ and ‘qualification allowance’
As part of its national strategy to attract and train a larger skilled workforce, and following the passing on Friday 23 June of its new law on economic immigration, the Bundestag also passed a...
Germany: Bundestag passes law on immigration for skilled workers
On Friday 23 June, the Bundestag passed its much-awaited Immigration Act for Skilled Workers (Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz). The new legislation takes inspiration from the Canadian points-based...
Germany: complaint filed against VW, BMW, & Mercedes Benz for breaching human rights due diligence obligations in Xinjiang
On 21 June the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) confirmed that it had filed a complaint against Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes Benz, accusing them of failing to exercise...
22 June 2023
United Kingdom: AI-generated employee available for hire
Avery Ingram, who takes her initials from the acronym AI, for artificial intelligence, is an entirely virtual software developer created by UK start-up February. Presented as the country's first...
20 June 2023
Spain: big fashion retailers set out to negotiate their own branch collective agreement
Fashion retailers including Inditex, Mango, H&M, Primark, Kiabi and Uniqlo have joined forces to form their own employers' organisation – ARTE – with a view to defending their interests, which...
16 June 2023
Mexico: new teleworking regulation to come into force in December 2023
In June 2023 Mexico’s Labour Ministry (STPS) published a new regulation on working from home that guarantees the rights of teleworking employees. The text comes into force in December 2023 and...
15 June 2023
Great Britain: building materials group Tarmac adds another element to its ongoing policy of supporting women in work
On 09 June, Tarmac announced that going forward it would be providing free period care products to all its female UK employees. This move is part of an overall policy to support and include women...
14 June 2023
Spain: putting legislation in place that regulates trainee status in companies in a bid to prevent fraud
Spain’s Ministry of Labour and the trade unions have together agreed to establish a separate legal status for company trainee workers. The aim of the text that is due to go to Parliament for...
13 June 2023
Four-day working week project starts in Brazil and ramps up in Portugal
Already tested in a dozen countries, the four-day working week is now being introduced in Brazil, where it will be rolled out during Q3 2023. Employees in pilot companies will be able to work at...
13 June 2023
United Kingdom: Aon creates carers’ leave allowance
Aon, the UK-headquartered insurance broker, provider of reinsurance and human capital consulting organisation, announced on 7 June the launch of a carers’ leave policy, which will allow its 6,000...
9 June 2023
EU: Council set to unravel presumption of salaried status for platform workers
European Union labour ministers are to meet on 12 June, under the Swedish presidency of the Council of the EU, to adopt their position on the proposed directive on platform work. Should a position...
9 June 2023
EU: Member States minimum wage increases slowing down
Despite stubbornly high inflation, only three European Union Member States have raised their minimum wages since the start of 2023. Over the space of a year however, minimum wage levels have risen...
8 June 2023
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...