Germany: Berlin grapples with diverging pressures on migration policy National legislation Under pressure from the electoral success of the far right, Germany is continuing to roll out an increasingly restrictive migration policy, to the point of reintroducing controls at all its land borders on Monday. At the same time, the country is signing bilateral agreements for selective economic immigration.
Lego links employee bonuses to carbon emission reductions Corporate practices In a bid to reduce the environmental impact of its factories, offices, shops and supply chain, Danish toy giant Lego has decided to link part of its employees’…
Data Employment of older workers grows slowly in Europe as the retirement age rises National legislation The employment rate among the over-55s is growing steadily as a result of the gradual rise in the retirement age in most European countries. The rate of employment remains, however, significantly lower than that for the 45-54 age group. This reflects the difficulty of getting and keeping older workers in employment. Our comparison of 31 European countries shows that the countries that emphasise lifelong learning and quality of life at work have the highest employment rates for older workers.
China: retirement age to start rising from 1 January 2025 National legislation On Friday, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, China’s highest legislative body, revealed that the retirement age is to be pushed back over the next 15 years in a “cautious and methodical manner”,…
France: Dalkia commits to achieving 6% employment rate for disabled employees by 2026 National industrial relations French energy company Dalkia and its trade unions (CGT, CFDT and CFE-CGC) have renewed their agreement on the "employment, professional integration and career development of people with disabilities" for a further three years. The company, which has set itself the goal of being recognised as a welcoming and inclusive employer of people with disabilities, is targeting a 6% employment rate for disabled workers by the end of the new agreement, in 2026.
Greece: new measures to stimulate employment from 1 January National legislation At an interministerial press conference held on 12 September, Greek labour and social security minister Niki Kerameos announced a number of measures to stimulate employment.…
Italy: Poste Italiane paves way for four-day week and endometriosis leave National industrial relations Poste Italiane, Italy's postal service provider and the country's largest employer with 120,000 staff, renewed its collective agreement at the end of July. The agreement makes it possible to trial a four-day week in certain departments and makes steps forward on work-life balance. It also introduces leave for women suffering from severe endometriosis. The agreement is due to be approved by the workers' assemblies.
Germany: collective bargaining kicks off in metalworking industry National industrial relations Collective bargaining in the metalworking industry between the IG Metall union and the employers’ federation Gesamtmetall began on Wednesday 11 September in the districts of Baden-Württemberg,…
Germany: Volkswagen terminates collective agreement on job security in force for 30 years National industrial relations Volkswagen management has formally terminated a number of collective agreements, including the job security agreement, which has been in force since 1994 and is valid until 2029. Redundancies may be planned from July 2025. Negotiations will begin in the coming days.
United Kingdom: government urges unions and employers to unite National industrial relations The UK’s Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer addressed the annual meeting of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in Brighton, south-east England, on 10 September. He was the first British head of government to attend the event for 15 years.…
Lego links employee bonuses to carbon emission reductions Corporate practices In a bid to reduce the environmental impact of its factories, offices, shops and supply chain, Danish toy giant Lego has decided to link part of its employees’…
Shein reveals two cases of child labour at its suppliers Reporting @en Chinese ultra-low-cost fashion company Shein announced in its sustainability report, published on 22 August, that two cases of forced labour were detected at its suppliers in early 2023.…
Ghislain Boyer (KPMG): “Human Resources Departments are put under pressure by CSRD process” Frame of reference/standards Faced with the imminent arrival of the social and environmental reporting directive (CSRD), the retail sector will be particularly affected. The increasing complexity of business models and supply chains makes ESG (environmental, social, and governance) reporting 'unmanageable,' according to Ghislain Boyer, Director at the ESG Center of Excellence at KPMG, interviewed by mind Retail.
Technologies How Tech Foundations (Atos) is using artificial intelligence to optimise the HR management of its consultants Training/Professional development Tech Foundations, the outsourcing and cloud business line of the Atos group, has been using Whoz, a HR staffing solution using artificial intelligence to allocate consultants to clients, for several months now. It is based on a detailed skills map, drawn up jointly by managers and employees themselves. The solution, which is reserved for digital services companies, could soon be extended to the entire market.
Technologies France: Orange harnesses virtual reality for staff cybersecurity training Training/Professional development Since October 2023, Orange has been rolling out virtual reality training to raise awareness among employees of the cybersecurity risks encountered in the workplace. The company drew on a track record of training carried out using this technology over several years by provider Uptale, particularly in soft skills, as well as on in-house support from its business divisions.
Technologies Ireland: Artificial Intelligence Advisory Council launches The first meeting of Ireland’s AI Advisory Council was held on 17 January. The aim of the new institution,…
Germany: Berlin grapples with diverging pressures on migration policy National legislation Under pressure from the electoral success of the far right, Germany is continuing to roll out an increasingly restrictive migration policy, to the point of reintroducing controls at all its land borders on Monday. At the same time, the country is signing bilateral agreements for selective economic immigration.
Data Employment of older workers grows slowly in Europe as the retirement age rises National legislation The employment rate among the over-55s is growing steadily as a result of the gradual rise in the retirement age in most European countries. The rate of employment remains, however, significantly lower than that for the 45-54 age group. This reflects the difficulty of getting and keeping older workers in employment. Our comparison of 31 European countries shows that the countries that emphasise lifelong learning and quality of life at work have the highest employment rates for older workers.
China: retirement age to start rising from 1 January 2025 National legislation On Friday, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, China’s highest legislative body, revealed that the retirement age is to be pushed back over the next 15 years in a “cautious and methodical manner”,…
France: Dalkia commits to achieving 6% employment rate for disabled employees by 2026 National industrial relations French energy company Dalkia and its trade unions (CGT, CFDT and CFE-CGC) have renewed their agreement on the "employment, professional integration and career development of people with disabilities" for a further three years. The company, which has set itself the goal of being recognised as a welcoming and inclusive employer of people with disabilities, is targeting a 6% employment rate for disabled workers by the end of the new agreement, in 2026.
Italy: Poste Italiane paves way for four-day week and endometriosis leave National industrial relations Poste Italiane, Italy's postal service provider and the country's largest employer with 120,000 staff, renewed its collective agreement at the end of July. The agreement makes it possible to trial a four-day week in certain departments and makes steps forward on work-life balance. It also introduces leave for women suffering from severe endometriosis. The agreement is due to be approved by the workers' assemblies.
Germany: collective bargaining kicks off in metalworking industry National industrial relations Collective bargaining in the metalworking industry between the IG Metall union and the employers’ federation Gesamtmetall began on Wednesday 11 September in the districts of Baden-Württemberg,…
Free Looking back at 2023: new inclusion topics emerged Diversity and inclusion were in the spotlight in 2023. This was reflected in Spain, where a law was passed to combat discrimination against LGBTI people and menstrual leave was introduced, as well as in Ireland, where domestic violence leave was introduced. These issues are also gaining ground within companies.
Free Looking back at 2023: initiatives across the board to tackle the skills shortage Amid the shortage of skilled labour, thinking ahead to the professions of the future and securing the skills needed to support business transformation have been among the main concerns of HR departments – as well as European governments – in recent times and numerous initiatives were launched in 2023 to attract and train new sources of talent.
Free Looking back at 2023: a new way of viewing older workers With the retirement age rising and a skills shortage in many parts of the world at present, companies need to learn to change the way they look at older employees and see them as an opportunity. Initiatives have begun to emerge in this area.
