August 2000
- 28 Aug 2000
Austria: Metalworking and textiles unions to merge<#PDF_LINK>In June 2000, the Austrian trade unions representing metalworking and textiles workers agreed to merge their organisations, creating the largest blue-collar workers' union in the ÖGB confederation. The merger is a further step in the reorganisation of Austrian trade union structures.
- 28 Aug 2000
Austria: Pension reform in place<#PDF_LINK>Despite protests by organisations representing employees, in July 2000 the Austrian parliament passed the coalition government's far-reaching new pension reform. Disputes over the new measures are very likely to continue in the future.
- 28 Aug 2000
Austria: White-collar workers' union launches restructuring<#PDF_LINK>In June 2000, the Union of Salaried Employees (GPA), Austria's largest trade union, launched a large-scale reform of its organisation. The reform was deemed necessary because of the profound economic changes taking place in the services sector. A modern and flexible structure should enable the union to react faster to these new developments.
- 28 Aug 2000
Belgium: Law agreed for new integrated police force<#PDF_LINK>After more than a year of bargaining between the Belgian Ministry of the Interior and trade unions, an agreement was reached in July 2000 on technical aspects of the future "integrated police force", a single structure that will merge the national gendarmerie, the criminal investigation department and municipal police forces.
- 28 Aug 2000
Belgium: Debate focuses on pay increases in times of economic growth<#PDF_LINK>With the Belgian economy experiencing rapid growth, trade unions are keen to ensure that workers receive their share of the bounty. The question is how this is to be achieved, given that statutory wage restraint has been in place since the slump years. For its part, in July 2000 the government drafted a legal framework for the financial participation of workers in the fruits of growth, which has met with a mixed response from the unions.
- 28 Aug 2000
Belgium: White-collar workers' joint committee prioritises training<#PDF_LINK>The National Auxiliary Joint Committee for White-Collar Workers (CPNAE/ANPCB) is the most important sectoral joint committee in Belgium. In addition to its weight in numeric terms, it also covers an unusually wide spectrum of activities, including a significant proportion of the new "emerging" sectors. The most recent sectoral agreement signed within the committee, concluded in May 1999, focuses exclusively on vocational training and may point the way for the future development of bargaining in Belgium.
- 28 Aug 2000
Germany: IG Metall signs collective agreements for Autostadt theme park<#PDF_LINK>In June 2000, the Autostadt theme park opened at Wolfsburg, the headquarters of Volkswagen, the German motor manufacturer. The IG Metall metalworkers' trade union had already signed collective agreements for the service workers to be employed at the park, thus ensuring that they are covered by collectively agreed minimum pay and conditions.
- 28 Aug 2000
Germany: Pay dispute resolved in retail sector<#PDF_LINK>After collective bargaining in the German retail trade had dragged on for some weeks, a collective agreement signed in Bavaria on 13 July 2000 brought the dispute between trade unions and employers' associations to an end. Subsequently, the basic guidelines of the Bavaria settlement - a relatively high pay increase and a supplementary pensions scheme - were followed in other bargaining regions.
- 28 Aug 2000
Germany: Pension reform plans strongly opposed<#PDF_LINK>In September 2000, the German government will present a draft bill on pensions reform. At the core of the planned reform is a dual pension scheme, consisting of both state and private pensions, with employees obliged to pay 4% of their gross income into company or other private schemes. The government's aim is to respond to future increases in the number of pensioners and decreases in the number of people in employment. By encouraging private pension schemes, employers' and employees' contributions to state retirement pensions, which make up a considerable proportion of non-wage labour costs, are to be stabilised at a maximum level of 22% of pay (shared equally by employers and employees). Trade union criticisms centre on the fact that the reform will put an end to the principle whereby employers and employees pay equally for retirement pension provision. Women's groups argue that the reform will have negative consequences for women, while many critics fear that the changes will increase poverty among older people.
- 28 Aug 2000
Germany: Employers and trade unions oppose xenophobia and right-wing extremism<#PDF_LINK>In summer 2000, a new series of violent attacks against foreigners sparked a broad public debate on how to tackle the problem of xenophobia and right-wing extremism in Germany. Both employers' associations and trade unions have been very much involved in this debate, emphasising the need to fight against extreme right-wing tendencies at the workplace.
- 28 Aug 2000
Denmark: Concern over education and training choices<#PDF_LINK>According to figures published in July 2000, increasing numbers of people are applying for higher education courses in Denmark. Many applicants have been attracted to new short vocational college programmes, to the detriment of traditional education programmes, such as those for teachers, pre-school teachers and nurses, and of university education in the fields of arts and science. This development has caused concern among employers' organisations and trade unions, worried about future shortages of key workers.
- 28 Aug 2000
Denmark: Court finds against department store in Muslim headscarf case<#PDF_LINK>In August 2000, the Danish High Court delivered its long-awaited judgment in the high-profile "headscarf case", in which a girl of Iraqi descent sued the Magasin department store for refusing to take her on as a trainee because she insisted on wearing her scarf. The High Court ruled that this was a violation of the Act prohibiting discrimination on the labour market, as it constituted indirect discrimination. However, two major retails, FDB and Dansk Supermarked, will maintain their ban on special headgear among their employees.
- 28 Aug 2000
Denmark: Debate over EMU membership intensifies<#PDF_LINK>During summer 2000, the publication of several new reports have fueled the debate in the run-up to September's referendum on Danish membership of the third stage of EU Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and the euro single currency. The Danish Employers' Confederation (DA) is recommending a "yes" vote, but is keeping a low profile, while the Confederation of Danish Trade Unions (LO) and the the majority of the trade unions are very active in the campaign for a "yes" to the euro.
- 28 Aug 2000
Spain: First sectoral agreement signed on the 35-hour week<#PDF_LINK>June 2000 saw the conclusion of Spain's first sectoral collective agreement providing for a 35-hour working week, applying to car-repair workshops in the Asturias region. In return for the working time reductions, seniority-based pay supplements will be abolished for new recruits and limited for existing workers.
- 28 Aug 2000
Spain: Vallès Occidental employment pact assessed<#PDF_LINK>In June 2000, local authorities and social partners in Spain's Vallès Occidental region drew up a positive assessment of the employment pact they signed in 1997, as part of the EU Territorial Employment Pacts initiative, and of the accompanying action programme for 1998 and 1999. The parties ratified their commitment to cooperate by signing a new action programme for the next four years.
- 28 Aug 2000
Spain: Law on Foreign Persons to be reformed<#PDF_LINK>In July 2000, Spain's conservative government approved a draft reform of the Law on Foreign Persons, which will be put to parliament in September. The project has been severely criticised by left-wing parties, trade unions and immigrant associations, as it reduces immigrants' rights as well as strengthening measures against their illegal entry and employment.
- 28 Aug 2000
EU Level: Global labour standards agreement signed at Freudenberg<#PDF_LINK>It was announced in July 2000 that an agreement setting out minimum labour standards for all those employed by the German multinational manufacturing group Freudenberg had been concluded by company management and international and national trade union organisations.
- 28 Aug 2000
EU Level: Draft EU Charter of fundamental rights stirs controversy<#PDF_LINK>The preliminary draft EU Charter of fundamental rights, which sets out a variety of social, economic, political and civil rights, was published on 28 July 2000 to a mixed reception. For example, the European Trade Union Confederation is disappointed, owing to the perceived lack of clarity over economic and social rights and British employers believe that the draft Charter is "totally unacceptable". Meanwhile, the European Women's Lobby believes that the draft uses sexist language and ignores the concept of gender equality as a basic right.
- 28 Aug 2000
Finland: Cheap labour conflict continues in merchant shipping<#PDF_LINK>Despite a government decision to grant subsidies to shipowners, tensions over "outflagging" and the use of foreign labour in Finnish merchant shipping continued in August 2000, with a shipowner hiring Polish seafarers. The Finnish Seafarers' Union considers these contracts of employment invalid and has boycotted the vessels concerned. The shipowner is considering legal action against the union.
- 28 Aug 2000
France: 35-hour week agreement signed at BNP-Paribas<#PDF_LINK>Following the recent annulment by the courts of a sectoral agreement introducing the 35-hour week in the French banking industry, a company agreement on the reduction of working time was signed in July 2000 at the BNP-Paribas group. The deal was signed by three trade unions - CFDT, CFTC and SNB-CGC - with CGT and CGT-FO refusing to sign. However, the banking federation of CFDT has contested the signature of its representatives, and will consult before deciding whether to endorse it .
- 28 Aug 2000
France: Report on France's economic and social prospects presented to Prime Minister<#PDF_LINK>In July 2000, the National Economic Planning Agency presented to the Prime Minister a major report on France's economic and social prospects. This report, which should form the basis for government action, was preceded by a wide-ranging consultation process involving the social partners and various other economic and social actors.
- 28 Aug 2000
France: Court sets limits on subcontracting<#PDF_LINK>In two rulings issued in July 2000, France's highest court, the Cour de Cassation, laid down limits governing the transfer of employment contracts arising from a change in an employer's legal status. The judgments have important implications for the subcontracting and outsourcing of activities by companies.
- 28 Aug 2000
France: Government refuses to approve new UNEDIC agreement<#PDF_LINK>On 24 July 2000, the French government officially announced that it would not approve a new agreement reforming the UNEDIC unemployment insurance system, signed by employers' organisations (CGPME, MEDEF and UPA) and two trade union confederations (CFDT and CFTC). In the light of this decision, these unions and employers' organisations took a joint decision "temporarily to withdraw from the administrative board of UNEDIC".
- 28 Aug 2000
France: Social terrorism breaks out in closure disputes<#PDF_LINK>During summer 2000, at a time when the French press was filled with headlines proclaiming the success of the economy, industrial relations news was dominated by stories of grim labour disputes. Starting at the Cellatex plant in the Ardennes, where workers threatened to blow up the factory, employees in a number of plants faced with closure used similar tactics in order to press for better severance packages.
- 28 Aug 2000
France: Debate and negotiations over trade union funding<#PDF_LINK>The debate over the funding of French trade unions from external sources has been given new momentum by two recent studies into the activities in this area of jointly-managed social security agencies. Two agreements concluded in June 2000 are designed to clarify this issue in a particular sector or company. The first sets up a jointly-managed association to fund social dialogue in the information technology, engineering and consulting sector. The second implements a system of company funding of unions represented at the Renault motor manufacturing group, based on works council election results.
- 28 Aug 2000
Greece: Government issues invitation to begin social dialogue<#PDF_LINK>In late July 2000, shortly after announcing proposals regarding new policies on employment and unemployment, the Greek government issued an invitation to the social partners to begin bilateral talks on nine issues in this area. The GSEE trade union confederation accepted the invitation.
- 28 Aug 2000
Greece: GSEE meets employers' organisations to discuss government employment proposals<#PDF_LINK>In July 2000, following the announcement by the Greek government of new measures on employment and unemployment, the GSEE trade union confederation held a series of meetings with employers' organisations to discuss their positions on the proposals.
- 28 Aug 2000
Greece: GSEE seeks legislative intervention to implement national agreement<#PDF_LINK>In late July 2000, the Greek General Confederation of Labour (GSEE) requested the government to take the legislative action necessary to implement a number of provisions of the National General Collective Agreement for 2000-2001 relating to pay, leave and policies to support the long-term unemployed.
- 28 Aug 2000
Ireland: Dispute hits Irish Rail<#PDF_LINK>A seemingly intractable dispute between the Irish Locomotive Drivers' Association (ILDA) and Irish Rail has caused widespread disruption to Irish train services during summer 2000. A recent initiative by third parties to resolve the dispute was rejected by ILDA. As the dispute approached its 10th week in mid-August, the situation was one of deadlock and stalemate.
- 28 Aug 2000
Ireland: Parental leave provisions extended after Commission moves<#PDF_LINK>Parents of children who were born between December 1993 and June 1996 are now entitled to 14 weeks' unpaid parental leave, after the Irish government moved in July 2000 to comply with a finding by the European Commission that Ireland's Parental Leave Act 1998 was too restrictive.
- 28 Aug 2000
Ireland: Discrimination claims up 40%, says new equality agency<#PDF_LINK>Claims for discrimination at work rose by 40% in the first half of 2000, largely reflecting the impact of the recent Employment Equality Act 1998, according to the director of Ireland's new Office of Equality Investigations.
- 28 Aug 2000
Italy: Atypical workers elect representatives on social insurance fund board<#PDF_LINK>June 2000 saw the first elections for workers' representatives on the administrative board of the social insurance fund for 1.8 million "atypical" consultancy and freelance workers, managed by Italy's National Institute for Social Insurance (Inps). The main trade union confederations received most of the votes, but the turn-out was very low.
- 28 Aug 2000
Italy: Temporary agency work extended to public administration<#PDF_LINK>In May 2000, a framework agreement was concluded on the introduction of temporary agency work in the Italian public administration. The agreement leaves various detailed provisions to be agreed at the level of the various subsectors of the public administration, and this process was completed in July with the conclusion of an agreement for regional and local administrations.
- 28 Aug 2000
Italy: Reform of the education system reaches universities<#PDF_LINK>Reform of the Italian education and training system has been high on the agenda of the government and social partners for some years. In August 2000, the reform process reached the universities with the adoption of a radical decree law, providing for changes such as the introduction of a two-tier degree system. The reform is bound to have major repercussions on the entry into the labour market of graduates. It should help reduce the drop-out rate and the excessively long time taken to graduate – two distinctive features of Italian universities – and therefore raise the number of graduates and accelerate their entry into the labour market. Moreover, the diversification of university education should lead to a closer match between labour demand and supply.
- 28 Aug 2000
Netherlands: Proposal to give individual employees a say over working hours<#PDF_LINK>In July 2000, two Dutch political parties proposed new legislation to grant individual employees a greater say over their own working hours. The proposal garnered support from the trade unions and the majority in the Lower House of parliament, but ran into opposition from employers' associations.
- 28 Aug 2000
Netherlands: FNV union confederation champions share-option schemes for employees<#PDF_LINK>In its draft memorandum on employment conditions for 2001, issued in July 2000, the Netherlands' FNV trade union confederation is seeking share-option schemes for all employees. Reactions to the proposal have been largely positive.
- 28 Aug 2000
Netherlands: Rising number of female WAO recipients raises issue of prevention<#PDF_LINK>In summer 2000, it became clear that increasing numbers of young people, and especially women, are now claiming WAO disability benefit in the Netherlands, and that they are suffering disproportionately from psychological complaints. These trends have caused some alarm among the the government and social partners, and the response is to stress prevention of sickness and disability, taking into account gender differences.
- 28 Aug 2000
Norway: Developments in membership of unions and employers' organisations<#PDF_LINK>In May 2000, Statistics Norway released new statistics on the membership of trade unions and employers' organisations in Norway. There was a relatively modest increase in the total memberships of the various organisations in 1999, and the figures indicate a continuation of trends in density levels seen in previous years, and notably a slight fall in union density.
- 28 Aug 2000
Portugal: Social partners renew dialogue<#PDF_LINK>In July 2000, the Portuguese social partners and government relaunched the social dialogue process, following a gap of several months. As previously agreed in January, the dialogue will deal with four issues – jobs and training, health and safety, redistribution and productivity, and social security – within specific working groups.
- 28 Aug 2000
Portugal: New commission prepares revision of labour law<#PDF_LINK>During 2000, an official commission, made up of legal experts, has been examining possible revisions to Portuguese labour law. The government wants to make labour law more efficient and coherent, and to open up more space for collective bargaining rather than legal regulation.
- 28 Aug 2000
Sweden: Government proposes unemployment insurance reform, while union launches own scheme<#PDF_LINK>At the end of June 2000, the Swedish government presented a bill seeking to establish a "fairer and more distinct" unemployment insurance system. The reform will not involve a major increase in the current earnings-related ceiling on the maximum level of unemployment benefit, a major concern for better-paid workers. Soon after the bill was presented, the Swedish Confederation of Professional Associations (SACO) launched a supplementary unemployment insurance scheme for its members, which will cover their real loss of income in the event of unemployment.
- 28 Aug 2000
Sweden: Government commissions review of labour legislation<#PDF_LINK>In July 2000, the Swedish government commissioned the National Institute for Working Life to conduct a study to examine a possible overhaul of certain important aspects of labour legislation relating to job security, in the light of changes in the labour market and economy, such as the growth of "atypical" work.
- 28 Aug 2000
Sweden: Proposed changes in sick pay meet strong opposition<#PDF_LINK>In August 2000, a government committee proposed changes to the Swedish health and sickness insurance system, including an extension from 14 to 60 days of the period of sickness during which the employer is responsible for sick pay. The announcement immediately met with opposition from the social partners.
- 28 Aug 2000
EU Countries: Outsourcing and industrial relations in motor manufacturing<#PDF_LINK>Employers in many sectors are increasingly outsourcing various activities to outside parties. This EIRO comparative study seeks to examine the impact of such outsourcing on industrial relations in the EU (plus Norway), focusing on the example of the motor manufacturing sector. The study: examines the evidence on the extent of outsourcing and the reasons for this strategy; outlines the (limited) legal and collectively agreed provisions governing the industrial relations aspects of outsourcing; looks at the effect of outsourcing on matters such as collective bargaining arrangements and membership of trade union and employers' organisations; and sets out the views and strategies of the social partners.
- 28 Aug 2000
EU Countries: La sous-traitance et les relations industrielles dans l'industrie automobile<#PDF_LINK>Dans de nombreux secteurs, les employeurs sous-traitent de plus en plus fréquemment différentes activités à des opérateurs extérieurs. La présente étude comparative de l'EIRO s'efforce d'examiner les répercussions de ces sous-traitances sur les relations industrielles dans l'UE (et la Norvège), en mettant l'accent sur l'exemple du secteur de la construction automobile. Cette étude analyse les données disponibles sur l'ampleur de la sous-traitance et les motivations de cette stratégie; elle décrit les dispositions de la législation (rares) et des conventions collectives régissant les relations industrielles dans le cadre de la sous-traitance; elle observe l'effet de la sous-traitance sur les domaines comme les conventions collectives et l'adhésion aux organisations syndicales et patronales; et elle expose les points de vues et les stratégies des partenaires sociaux.
- 28 Aug 2000
EU Countries: Outsourcing und Arbeitsbeziehungen in der Automobilindustrie<#PDF_LINK>In vielen Bereichen vergeben Arbeitgeber zunehmend verschiedene Aktivitäten an dritte Anbieter (Outsourcing). Diese EIRO-Vergleichstudie ist ein Versuch, die Auswirkungen des Outsourcing auf die Arbeitsbeziehungen innerhalb der EU (plus Norwegen) zu untersuchen und konzentriert sich dabei auf die Automobilindustrie. In dieser Studie werden der nachweisbare Umfang des Outsourcing und die Gründe für diese Strategie untersucht und die für die Outsourcing-Aspekte der industriellen Beziehungen (begrenzt) geltenden rechtlichen und tariflichen Bestimmungen skizziert. Sie betrachtet die Auswirkungen des Outsourcing auf Gebiete wie die Tarifverhandlungen und die Mitgliedschaft in Gewerkschaften und Arbeitgeberverbänden und sie stellt die Positionen und Strategien der Sozialpartner dar.
- 28 Aug 2000
United Kingdom: Round-up of industrial relations developments<#PDF_LINK>June and July 2000 saw new moves concerning a number of key issues in UK industrial relations, including legal challenges to the teachers' performance-related pay scheme and the UK's parental leave Regulations, the commencement of further provisions of the Employment Relations Act 1999 and the debate about the draft EU Directive on consultation rights.
- 28 Aug 2000
United Kingdom: Managing employees in high-skill sectors<#PDF_LINK>The UK government argues that modern employee relations are essential in order to compete within the new "knowledge economy". This feature reports on research in two high-skill sectors, completed in 1999, which evaluates the contribution of new work practices - such as job security, semi-autonomous teamworking and various forms of employee participation - to explaining the success of these industries.