EurWORK European Observatory of Working Life

Articles

EurWORK articles cover working life in Europe, in particular the fields of industrial relations and working conditions. The articles are based on quarterly reporting provided by the Network of Eurofound Correspondents.

  • Topical updates summarise and update developments around selected topics, which are relevant across a number of Member States at the same time
  • Spotlight reports cover in more depth country-level events, debates and changes in regulation related to working life, aiming to provide a balanced view of all parties’ positions
  • Research in Focus articles report on important research findings (including surveys) from the national level, often, but not exclusively, in the area of working conditions
  • In brief articles are short news items drawn from the correspondents' quarterly reports
  • Country updates summarise developments at national level and are published 4 times a year
13895 items found

  • Working time moves to the top of the agenda

    • United Kingdom
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    The immediate catalyst for the current prominence of working time in UK industrial relations is the failure in November 1996 of the Government's attempt to have the EU Directive on certain aspects of the organisation of working time (Council Directive 93/104/EC of 23 November 1993) annulled by the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Steps are being taken to implement the Directive, though the present Conservative Government hopes to get the Directive "disapplied" if it wins the forthcoming general election. Also important, however, is the growing debate about the implications for the well-being of individuals and their families of the fact that UK's hours of work are long in comparison with other EU member states.

  • Employment and Labour Market Committee holds first meeting

    • EU Level
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    The Employment and Labour Market Committee (ELC), established by a Council Decision on 20 December 1996, held its inaugural meeting in Brussels on 29 January 1997. The ELC was created in response to a request by the European Council for the setting up of a stable structure to support the work of the Labour and Social Affairs Council in employment-related matters. This area has taken on a new dimension in the context of the" European employment strategy" outlined at the European Council in Essen in December 1994. The ELC is expected to improve the balance between employment, on the one hand, and economic and monetary issues, on the other hand, in the European debate. The new Committee will fulfil a similar role to that of the Economic Policy Committee which provides advice to the Economics and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN).

  • Apparent breakdown of Belgian central bargaining

    • Belgium
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    For the first time since 1960, the Belgian social partners have failed to reach an intersectoral pay agreement and have instead accepted government imposition of measures on employment and maximum pay increases. This development runs counter to all traditions of free collective bargaining and the autonomy of both sides of industry. It also appears to reinforce the trend towards sector-level bargaining, away from intersectoral or central-level bargaining, thereby widening the disparities between strong and weak sectors.

  • LO executive committee proposes new action programme

    • Norway
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    The executive committee (sekretariatet) of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisasjonen i Norge, or LO), the largest union confederation in Norway, has recommended a programme of action containing a set of policy principles for the period 1997-2001. The programme encompasses a wide variety of social and economic issues and is to be adopted at the confederation's congress on 10-16 May 1997 after a plenary debate.

  • Paper industry agreement reached after conciliation

    • Sweden
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    On 6 February 1997, theSwedish Paper Workers' Union and the Employers' Federation of Swedish Forest Industries told the conciliators Lars-Gunnar Albåge and Rune Larson that they accepted their proposal for a national collective agreement on wages for 1997. There had been two stumbling blocks in the negotiations: the trade union's claim for a reduction of annual working time by 25 hours; and the employers' insistence on an agreement that would run for at least two years. The outcome is an agreement on wages only, that runs for one year, backdated to 1 January 1997.

  • Moves towards greater working time flexibility

    • Austria
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    The central social partners - the Austrian Trade Union Confederation (Österreichischer Gewerkschaftsbund,ÖGB) and the Austrian Chamber of Commerce (Wirtschaftskammer Österreich, WKÖ), the statutory body grouping almost all nonagricultural enterprises - have for some time been discussing a range of changes to the 1969 Working Time Law (Arbeitszeitgesetz, AZG). The aim is to maintain competitiveness and employment by making possible a more uneven distribution of working hours over time, without financial penalty to the employer. This is expected to lead to higher productivity, better use of plant, lower inventories, and a capability to respond more swiftly to variations in demand. The trade unions also hope to achieve a reduction of hours worked by individual employees in favour of more employment.

  • Road transport strike: consequences for industry and trade

    • Spain
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    February 1997 saw a major strike in Spain's road transport sector. The dispute was well supported, mainly in the north of the country, but was called off without winning many concessions from the Government.

  • Pressure mounts to protect standard employment relationship

    • Portugal
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    Some Portuguese sectors have been characterised by a widespread move away from standard, regular and permanent jobs towards temporary forms of employment, including irregular and casual work, homeworking and certain forms of self-employment. These developments are the result of an interplay between macroeconomic conditions, company strategy and labour legislation. However, pressure is mounting amongst the social partners to counter further fragmentation of standard employment statuses.

  • "Social chapter" takes centre stage in the election run-up

    • United Kingdom
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    As the 1 May election date draws nearer, both the Conservative Government and the main opposition party, Labour, have begun to fight their campaigns by taking opposite stances on the social policy Agreement annexed to the Maastricht Treaty on European Union - the so-called "social chapter", from which the UK has "opted out". In February, the Government launched an attack, stating that if the Labour Party were to win the general election, its commitment to "signing up" to the social chapter would cost the UK 500,000 jobs.

  • Bargaining in 1996 - from the Employment Alliance to the sick pay dispute

    • Germany
    • EF report
    • 27 February 1997
    • Eurwork
    The Institute for Economics and Social Science (Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaftliches Institut, WSI) has recently published its annual examination of the previous collective bargaining round. It paints a rather mixed picture of 1996, a year in which collective bargaining was overshadowed by continuing relatively poor economic performance and a further increase in unemployment. GDP grew by only 1.4% over the year, while at the end of the year more than 4 million people were officially registered as unemployed.

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