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May 2006

• 22 May 2006
  Spain: New measures to reduce temporary employment

  As part of a new legislative proposal, the Spanish government, employer organisations and trade unions signed a preliminary agreement in April 2006. The proposed new legislation aims to curb the widespread use of temporary contracts in the Spanish labour market. It also contains provisions enabling entrepreneurs to reduce their direct taxes on labour and transform some temporary contracts into permanent ones.

• 22 May 2006
  Portugal: New proposal for unemployment benefit reform

  At the end of March 2006, the Portuguese government presented a new proposal for unemployment benefit reform. The first proposal, presented in October 2005, generated much controversy among the social partners. Although pleased that the new proposal is more favourable, the social partners remain dissatisfied with some aspects of it. One of their main objections is to the suggestion that a worker could receive unemployment benefit along with dismissal compensation when a labour contract ends by mutual agreement.

• 22 May 2006
  Italy: State of economy a key issue at Cgil congress

  In early March 2006, Italy’s largest trade union confederation, Cgil, held its 15th congress in Rimini, under the leadership of General Secretary, Guglielmo Epifani. During the congress, delegates discussed several topics of national importance, including strategies to fight precarious employment, social protection for all workers, the extension of citizenship rights, and tax reform.

• 22 May 2006
  Ireland: Landmark agreement reached at Irish Ferries

  A key element of the December 2005 settlement, in the major dispute between Irish Ferries and the trade unions, was the drafting of a legally binding agreement which was unique in an Irish industrial relations context.

• 22 May 2006
  Finland: Improvements to family leave proposed

  A tripartite working group has unanimously agreed on new proposals regarding the allocation of parental leave expenditure. The proposals include a provision to increase the parental allowance of both mothers and fathers.

• 22 May 2006
  Romania: Collective dismissals in mining sector

  A recent government decision will allow the collective redundancies of over 10,000 workers in the mining sector in Romania in 2006. The redundancies arise from restructuring, reorganisation and privatisation activities in 18 large national companies and organisations in the sector.

• 22 May 2006
  United Kingdom: Peugeot announces closure of Coventry plant

  In April 2006, Peugeot announced the closure of its plant at Ryton, near Coventry in the UK, with the loss of 2,300 jobs. This was the third motor manufacturing closure in the region in the past three years. Trade unions particularly criticised the lack of consultation, while the government expressed disappointment at the news. Although the automotive industry remains strong in the UK overall, there are fears that more companies will relocate to lower-cost eastern European countries.

• 16 May 2006
  Slovenia: New public sector union confederation

  On 1 February 2006, five Slovenian public sector trade unions founded the Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions (KSJS). With 81,000 members, KSJS is now the second largest confederation in Slovenia. Its establishment comes at a crucial time, prior to the launch of comprehensive economic and labour reforms, which will have an impact on the legal and social security rights of public sector workers.

• 16 May 2006
  Germany: Union membership decline slows down

  According to the latest figures from the Confederation of German Trade Unions (DGB), the membership of its affiliated trade unions declined overall by 3.3% in 2005 to 6.77 million members. However, compared with 2004 data, the pace of membership decline slowed down and there was even an increase of 5% in the number of new members. Meanwhile, membership of the German Metalworkers’ Union (IG Metall) exceeded that of the United Services Union (ver.di), making it the largest union in 2005.

• 15 May 2006
  United Kingdom: Government criticised over occupational pension schemes

  In March 2006, a report from the parliamentary Ombudsman concluded that the government had unfairly misled people into feeling reassured that their company pension was secure. At the same time, the government adopted legislation to relax the minimum requirements under which final salary occupational pension schemes had to be funded by companies.

• 15 May 2006
  Austria: Union president forced to resign over bank scandal

  In late March 2006, the Austrian Trade Union Federation (ÖGB) revealed information about shady derivatives trading carried out by its own bank, BAWAG. Subsequently, ÖGB President, Fritz Verzetnitsch, was forced to resign after admitting his involvement in a decision of assuming liability for the bank’s losses by using the union’s ‘strike fund’ as collateral. Rudolf Hundstorfer was appointed as the new ÖGB President in April, a post he will take up in 2007.

• 15 May 2006
  Spain: Measures to encourage geographic labour mobility

  New measures aimed at enhancing geographic labour mobility are due to be introduced in Spain in the next three to four months. The measures were first proposed by the Ministry of Labour and aim to reduce incompatibilities between national and regional employment systems.

• 15 May 2006
  Norway: Renewal of agreements in manufacturing industry

  In April 2006, the social partners agreed on recommendations for the renewal of collective agreements in parts of the traditional manufacturing industries in Norway. The recommendations comprise provisions for a general pay increase, the strengthening of shop stewards’ powers to fight social dumping and a continuation of the early retirement scheme.

• 15 May 2006
  Germany: Narrowing of gender pay gap

  From 2000 to 2005, the gender pay gap narrowed overall in Germany, according to a March 2006 press release from the German Federal Statistical Office, Destatis. A recently published report provides new data on the earnings differential between women and men in western and eastern Germany. Although the pay gap decreased in western Germany, it increased marginally in eastern Germany.

• 15 May 2006
  Poland: Nationwide protest action in public healthcare sector

  In April 2006, a nationwide protest in the public healthcare sector took place in Poland. Prior to this, employee representative organisations had demanded an immediate pay rise of 30% for the sector’s employees. Although the Ministry of Health did not entirely reject those demands, it was not willing to grant the requested pay increase until the beginning of 2007. However, the unions were dissatisfied with the ministry’s decision and opted to proceed with a one-day protest on Friday 7 April.

• 15 May 2006
  Malta: Union loses dispute with Public Broadcasting Services

  The General Workers’ Union in Malta argues that proposals agreed in the new collective agreement of the Public Broadcasting Services (PBS) should still apply to employees who, following a restructuring exercise, were redeployed or given early retirement. However, the Industrial Tribunal has rejected the union’s claims and has decided that the new collective agreement will only cover workers currently employed by the PBS.

• 15 May 2006
  United Kingdom: Ruling highlights poor industrial relations at Asda

  In February 2006, an employment tribunal found that the supermarket chain, Asda, had breached the law by offering financial incentives to employees to give up their rights to collective bargaining. The case is one of a series of disputes involving the company and the GMB general union, and highlights the deteriorating state of management–union relations in the company.

• 15 May 2006
  Austria: Low take-up of subsidised wage scheme

  Few employers and employees have availed of a new‚ subsidised wage scheme, which became effective in Austria in January 2006. As a result, the scheme appears to have been unsuccessful, thus far, in its main goal of stimulating employment in low-wage sectors. Nonetheless, experts are divided over the reasons for the scheme’s failure to date.

• 15 May 2006
  Czech Republic: Hyundai plans major greenfield investment

  Hyundai Motor Company goes ahead with a major greenfield investment in Nošovice in the Moravia-Silesia region of the Czech Republic. The company plans to open a new manufacturing plant, which should begin operations in October 2008 and employ 3,000 people. It is expected that a further 13,000 people will find work within the supply industry and in services. Both the Czech government and Hyundai will sign an agreement outlining the conditions of this investment.

• 15 May 2006
  Italy: Secretary General of Cisl resigns

  On 10 April 2006, Savino Pezzotta, Head of Cisl, Italy’s second largest trade union confederation, resigned. The former confederate secretary, Raffaele Bonanni, will succeed Mr Pezzotta.

• 10 May 2006
  Czech Republic: Wage increase lowest in 13 years

  The Czech Statistical Office has announced that the average monthly salary in 2005 increased by about 5.5% to approximately CZK 19,000 (€668). Taking inflation into account, the real increase in salaries amounted to 3.5%. This is the lowest annual wage increase since the separation of the former Czechoslovakia in 1992, and comes at a time of unprecedented economic growth.

• 10 May 2006
  Austria: Union merger announced

  In March 2006, Austria’s largest trade union, the Union of Salaried Employees (GPA) and the smaller Printing, Journalism and Paper Union (DJP) announced plans to merge their organisations. As in other cases of planned union mergers, these measures are a response to significant membership losses and the perceived necessity of streamlining organisational structures in order to consolidate union finances.

• 10 May 2006
  United Kingdom: Government to increase national minimum wage

  In March 2006, the Department of Trade and Industry announced that it had accepted recommendations of the Low Pay Commission that the three different rates of the national minimum wage should be increased, with effect from October 2006. The move will affect some 1.3 million workers and has attracted mixed reactions from the social partners. The commission also recommended tougher enforcement of the minimum wage in sectors employing migrant workers.

• 10 May 2006
  Finland: Unions campaign actively for new members

  Many Finnish trade unions have begun to campaign for new members to increase the strength of the union movement. In recent years, the number of employees without union representation has increased and trade unions are concerned that this trend will continue. There has also been greater competition among the unions in signing up new members.

• 10 May 2006
  Lithuania: Employee dismissed for alleging company tax evasion

  Illegal payment of wages is believed to be widespread in Lithuania, although the issue has seldom been discussed openly. However, the problem received considerable public attention when an employee from a meat processing company reported unofficial payment of wages. This lead to a criminal investigation and the employee was subsequently dismissed by her employer.

• 10 May 2006
  Denmark: Unions disagree on financing of continuing training

  After a two-year assessment of the existing Danish adult and continuing training scheme, the government and the social partners issued a final declaration following a tripartite meeting in March 2006. The unions disagree on the extent to which the financing of part of the proposed efforts should be introduced in collective agreements.

• 10 May 2006
  Netherlands: Age discrimination towards younger workers in supermarket sector

  The Dutch Equal Treatment Commission (CGB) has confirmed cases of age discrimination among younger employees. A test case was run at the request of CNV Jongeren, the youth wing of the Christian Trade Union Federation. In line with CNV Jongeren’s assertion, the CGB found that when dismissing young staff members, supermarkets were technically breaching the Flexibility and Security Act. However, the sector-wide union organisation for Dutch supermarkets (CBL) feels that it has been unjustly attacked. Meanwhile, CNV Jongeren is proposing to link employment contracts to employees’ length of study.

• 10 May 2006
  United Kingdom: Further education to play key role in government’s skills strategy

  In March 2006, the UK government announced wide-ranging reforms to further education designed to equip colleges to play a central role in delivering its skills strategy.

• 10 May 2006
  Poland: Tougher sanctions needed to enforce labour court decisions

  The National Labour Inspectorate is responsible for ensuring compliance with labour court decisions. Information gathered as part of its monitoring activity indicates a decline in employer non-compliance. Nevertheless, abuses continue on a significant scale, and have a substantial impact on the employees affected, with some 90% of ignored labour court decisions relating to unpaid wages. The Labour Inspectorate believes that tougher regulations are necessary, and hopes that the legislative amendments being prepared by the Office of the President of the Republic of Poland will adopt more stringent measures.

• 10 May 2006
  Germany: Federal Labour Court endorses union’s rights

  In March 2006, the Federal Labour Court finally approved the trade union rights of a small metalworking union, CGM. A dispute arose between the German Metalworkers’ Union, IG Metall, and CGM after the latter had concluded several collective agreements on pay and working hours with corresponding employer organisations. After a decade of litigation, IG Metall must now accept its competitor’s collective agreements and its fully approved status as a trade union.

• 10 May 2006
  Belgium: Tense negotiations at Sonaca over restructuring plan

  At the end of March 2006, tensions arose at the aeronautics company Sonaca, due to a restructuring initiative that is likely to lead to the loss of 279 jobs. Following the announcement of the plan in 2003, the procedure to inform employees was set in motion in accordance with EU legislation. At the beginning of this year, trade unions and management signed an agreement agreeing to defer redundancies until the middle of the year. However, management broke the agreement on 16 March 2006 by dismissing 46 workers and negotiations were interrupted for several days.

• 10 May 2006
  Finland: Equality pay increment included in national wage agreement

  The current national incomes policy agreement includes an ‘equality increment’ for 2006, the distribution of which is calculated so that low-wage and female-dominated sectors are most likely to gain from it. However, some areas of the private sector have already agreed to pass the equality increment on to all wage earners. The agreement also includes a provision for implementing gender equality plans in the workplace.

• 08 May 2006
  Romania: Industrial action in chemical and petrochemical sector

  With the support of three nationally representative trade unions, employee representatives in the chemical and petrochemical industries have engaged in protest action in response to the persistent rise in the price of natural gas. The higher price has put cost pressures on companies operating in the sector, forcing many to downsize.

• 02 May 2006
  Finland: Road transport strike ends in new agreement

  As part of a dispute over the use of part-time labour, about 11,000 of Finland’s 30,000 road transport workers engaged in a four-day strike at the beginning of March. However, a new collective agreement, signed on 9 March, brought the strike to an end. Under the agreement, transport companies will be allowed to employ two part-time drivers per depot. In addition, drivers will be entitled to a salary increase of just over 6% over the period of the agreement, due to expire in January 2008.

• 02 May 2006
  Finland: Proposed new law on subcontracting work

  A tripartite working group, established as part of the latest wage policy agreement, recommends that a new law should be enacted concerning subcontracting services. Such a law would clarify client and contractor responsibility with regard to the use of hired work and outside labour. The aim is to promote the observation of terms of employment and to prevent competitive distortions caused by neglected employer obligations.

• 02 May 2006
  Finland: Huge job losses expected in paper sector

  On 8 March, the pulp and paper manufacturer UPM announced a large-scale restructuring programme, which is to lead to the reduction of over 10% of its workforce. Nearly 3,000 of these job losses will be in Finland. The substantial job cuts are motivated by the overproduction of paper.