News

Italy: Fiom-CGIL mobilization on January 28th against Fiat’s maneuvers and to defend collective bargaining
“Today, hundreds of thousands of metalworkers, Fiom affiliates or not, are with us” said Maurizio Landini on Friday, January 28th in Milan, on a Piazza del Duomo swarming with people, to sum up...
Spain: government presents draft bill on retirement at 67 after agreement with the social partners
Negotiations dealt with briskly.  The government, which already set the deadline to January 28th for the Council of Ministers to validate the text, expressed its will to reach an agreement with...
Portugal: government presents new system for layoff compensation to the social partners
Proposal.  The government has polished its proposal on layoff benefits (see our dispatch No.  100896).  Currently, employees subject to the mass layoff system or whose position is cancelled can...
Belgium: restructuring at Bpost, the former public post
There will be no compulsory redundancies reassured Bpost when presenting its four-year restructuring program, which is going to require €200M in investment.  The aim is to face the drop in mail...
27 January 2011
Netherlands: FNV union wants to tackle abusive use of youth minimum wage in supermarkets
Dutch supermarkets currently employ 260,000 people, i.e. 40,000 more than in 2009, according to the FNV.  This increase is artificial, due to the massive employment of young people working part...
Germany: first report on equal opportunities between men and women at work recommends radical shift in policy
Very upsetting report.  “I hope your contribution will bring new answers to the questions raised by the policy of gender equality.  I am expecting recommendations that can be implemented” asked...
27 January 2011
Sodexo: the union campaign against the French catering company is spreading and diversifying
On January 18, 2011, in a teleconference hosted by Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Danny Glover, chairman of the board of TransAfrica...
27 January 2011
Ireland: unions denounce the European Commission’s interference with the review of sectoral wage agreements
Memorandum.  This is one of the measures negotiated in December 2010 by the International Monetary Fund and the European Union to help Ireland.  By accepting the €67.5 billion, the Irish...
Finland: unions and the employers’ organization of technology industries work together to improve well-being at work
Develop methods to measure hardness and create tools to improve working conditions.  In a general context of increasing retirement age and careers, well being at work has become a key issue.  From...
United States: unionization rate dips below 12%
No need to panic.  One year earlier, the union membership rate was 12.3%.  In 1983, when the BLS started comparing such data, 20.1% of employees belonged to a trade union.  In the mid-1950s, 35%...
Italy: memorandum of understanding between banks, businesses and the Ministry of Economic Development to promote the CSR culture
Dialogue first.  Born from “awareness that durability can help maintain the country’s economic and social fabric, promote trust into the market and speed up the recovery,” the memorandum aims to...
27 January 2011
EU: interview of Pervenche Berès, Chair of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, and Alejandro Cercas, socialist MEP and coordinator of the same committee
Pervenche Berès.  Indeed, I think this is the right word for this package, which contains three texts: that on the single permit, that on the entry and residence of seasonal workers and that on...
Portugal: tense social atmosphere at the Portuguese post while liberalization is running late
Austerity. The management of the Portuguese post announced that it would apply, to the letter, the government’s recommendations regarding the planned pay cuts in the civil service within the...
Germany: Deutsche Bahn staff get 5% increase and extended job security
The end of extremely long negotiations.  Rail social partners aren’t hiding their joy.  The agreement presented yesterday, enabled by the signature, last week, of the agreement in private regional...
Netherlands: employers and unions agree on collective bargaining priorities for coming years
Culture of consensus, sense of anticipation, pragmatism… the polder system isn’t dead.  The evidence?  The Federation of Netherlands Unions (FNV), the Federation of Christian Unions (CNV) and the...
Great Britain: British Airways cabin crew vote for another strike after 13 months of conflict
75% turnout.  The airline’s 10,220 cabin crew were invited to answer the question: “Are you prepared to take part in strike action?”.  With 75% turning out to vote, a great majority (78.5%) voted...
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: government submits draft on pay transparency
On 6 March, the French government sent social partners a draft bill to transpose the EU Pay Transparency Directive. The text provides details on the implementation timetable, corporate...
9 March 2026
2
Sweden: government delays transposition of Pay Transparency Directive
On 11 March, the Swedish government announced it is postponing the transposition of the Pay Transparency Directive. Having originally targeted an entry into force on 1 July 2026, it has conceded a...
3
Germany: menopause issues finally gain corporate recognition
With 12 million women over 40 in the labour force, German companies and occupational health professionals are beginning to adopt support policies for those affected by menopause-related issues...
4
Italy: Deliveroo and Glovo targeted by justice over courier working conditions
The Milan Public Prosecutor's Office has ordered two of Italy's leading food delivery platforms, Foodinho (Glovo) and Deliveroo, to be placed under judicial administration. According to...
9 March 2026
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Valérie Decaux (La Poste): “Our older workers policy is based on individualisation to move beyond age-related-stigmatisation”
La Poste Group (nearly 200,000 employees in France) unveiled its first senior employment agreement in late February. The text outlines measures for early retirement assistance, workplace...
6
Denmark: government launches transposition of the Pay Transparency Directive
On 26 February, the Danish government submitted a draft bill to transpose the Pay Transparency Directive for consultation until 27 March. The bill sets an implementation date of 1 January 2027...