Developments in working life in Europe - Q2 2019

What has taken place during the second quarter of 2019 in the industrial relations and working conditions landscape in European countries? There is no need to look further: you can get up-to-date information as reported by our Network of Eurofound Correspondents who, on a quarterly basis, chart the latest developments in those fields of observation. What resolutions were passed by Parliament in Austria on labour and social policy matters? What are the criticisms from Belgium employers’organisations regarding the support service for freelancers that is launched by the largest trade union confederation? What developments have been finally reached in Cyprus in the construction industry?

Be informed at a glance about the following issues and actions: • Rise of gig economy in the UK • Political agreement to improve the Danish working environment • High record in Germany on fixed-term employment • Digital transformation may represent a risk to the labour market in Czechia • The increase of labour rights violations in 2018 in Bulgaria • The ongoing disputes and strikes in Belgium in the aviation sector. Read these updates and more in the following areas:

Actors and institutions

• Austria: New interim government takes office after political crisis
• Finland: New government in place after parliamentary elections
• Italy: European elections shift balance between coalition partners
• Lithuania: Two largest education trade unions merge
• Sweden: Union membership rates continue to fall
• United Kingdom: New unions for English language teachers and legal workers

Collective bargaining

• Austria: Trends in collective bargaining rounds
• Belgium: Intersectoral negotiations arrive at partial solution on wage norm and welfare envelope
• Cyprus: Construction industry on the verge of labour peace / Deadlock in negotiations in hotel industry
• Hungary: Education union clashes with government
• Latvia: General agreement finally signed in construction sector
• Luxembourg: Developments in industrial relations and restructuring in finance and aviation sectors
• Norway: Wage bargaining in public and private sectors reached by agreement through mediation

Equality

• Ireland: New initiative to boost gender equality at board level
• Italy: Occupational returns for education on the increase but gender gap remains
• Portugal: Barometer launched to track gender pay gap
• Slovenia: Gender pay gap increasing at fastest rate in the EU
• Spain: Average income levels improve but inequalities remain

Individual employment relations

• Croatia: Metal company offers perks to retain workers
• Czechia: Draft amendment to Labour Code submitted to government
• Estonia: Employers must store new information in employment register
• Germany: Fixed-term employment at record high
• Portugal: Mixed reaction to proposal to limit fixed-term contracts
• United Kingdom: Gig economy work doubled in the last three years

Industrial action

• Belgium: Strikes and disputes continue in the aviation industry
• Cyprus: Contract workers in the public sector protest against unfair treatment
• Denmark: SAS pilots strike over pay and scheduling
• Estonia: New academic trade union strikes over pay
• Finland: Increase in industrial conflicts in 2018
• Hungary: Dispute with Magyar Suzuki over union rights ends in court
• Ireland: Health support staff strike over pay increase
• Italy: Renewal period for agreements marked by union actions
• Lithuania: Trade unions, NGOs and political groups march and rally for their rights
• Malta: Nurses threaten industrial action / Dispute over teachers’ workload
• Norway: SAS pilots’ strike resolved by agreement for wage increase and working time rotation / Dispute over pension rights for part-time workers in public-owned hospitals becomes political
• Poland: Teachers’ strike suspended until September 2019 / Judiciary personnel continue wage-related protests
• Romania: Labour disputes continue in second quarter
• Sweden: Pilots go on strike after agreement with SAS failed

Labour market and employment

• Croatia: Government adopts its national reform programme
• Czechia: OECD warns of threat to industry due to automation
• Estonia: Employment crisis in the energy sector
• France: Government presents its six-month reform action plan
• Hungary: Criticisms from trade unions over the reform over science academy
• Malta: Report reveals that many foreign workers are transitory
• Netherlands: New act aims to make labour market more dynamic
• Slovenia: Employers warn of labour shortages more severe than before the economic crisis
• Spain: Number of workers covered by social security reaches record high especially in tourism, social services and care
• Sweden: New measures to promote labour market integration

Pay and income

Pay developments

• Bulgaria: Transport workers in Sofia to get pay rise
• Czechia: Mixed views on salary increase in the public sector in 2020
• Greece: Evolution of wages from 2017 to 2018
• Ireland: Gender pay gap bill published
• Latvia: Study shows continuation of wages growth, faster in public sector
• Lithuania: Mixed views among social partners over the disclosure of salary in job adverts

Minimum wages

• Czechia: Discussions on increasing the minimum wage in 2020 kick off
• Ireland: New sectoral minimum wages approved in construction and electrical industries
• Latvia: Teachers look for promised increase of minimum wage in 2019 but uncertainty remains for further increase in 2020
• Luxembourg: Final phase of minimum wage increase implemented by legislation despite social partners’ contrasting views
• Poland: Minimum wage for 2020 under debate
• Spain: Trade unions highlight non-compliance with minimum wage in some sectors

Skills, training and employability

• Belgium: Support service for freelancers
• Bulgaria: Over 4,000 applications for training voucher scheme

Social dialogue

• France: Social partners do not agree on the bonus-malus system in the unemployment insurance reform
• Germany: Social partners seek to adapt working conditions rules in the metal and electrical industry
• Luxembourg: Potential end of tripartite agreements in steel sector
• Norway: Tripartite efforts to increase employment / ILO publishes report on tripartism in Norway

Social protection and reforms

• Austria: Parliament approves bills to improve workers’ lives
• Bulgaria: Increase in labour rights violations recorded for 2018
• Croatia: New regulations on the rights of unemployed people came into force
• France: New law to boost recruitment and protect platform workers
• Greece: New measure aim to protect private sector workers / Rules to protect delivery drivers
• Latvia: Healthcare reform put on hold by parliament until 2021
• United Kingdom: Compensation for blacklisted construction workers in settlement of their claims

Pension reforms

• Croatia: Trade Unions call for referendum on statutory pension age
• Netherlands: National private pension plan agreed after long debate
• Romania: Parliament gives go-ahead to new pension law
• Slovenia: Social partners debate on retirement age and pension reforms
• Slovakia: Constitution limits retirement age and protects minimum wage

Working environment

• Denmark: Political agreement to improve working environment / New act to bolster psychological work environment
• France: Obligation from employers to compensate employees for anxiety related to asbestos
• Norway: Joint initiative to reduce sickness absence and withdrawal from working life
• Slovakia: Wage supplements for hazardous work and weekend work increased

Working time and work–life balance

Family leave

• Croatia: Increase in maternity leave allowance
• Ireland: Extensions of unpaid parental leave to 26 weeks by 2020

Working time

• Germany: ECJ judgment generates strong criticism among employers to record working time of employees
• Slovakia: US Steel Košice inaugurates four-day week to face market crisis