Two separate committees - a group of professors appointed by the Government
and a committee of economists from the Finnish social partners - published
reports in early May 1997 on the industrial relations implications of EU
Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) for Finland The social partners themselves
have adopted a joint declaration on EMU membership.
In elections held in April 1997, a joint list of socialist and communist
trade unionists narrowly won control of Portugal's South and Islands Banking
Union (Sindicato dos Bancários do Sul e Ilhas, SBSI), which will continue to
be affiliated to the General Workers' Union (União Geral de Trabalhadores,
UGT).
"Negotiate a reduction of working time - or else public opinion will force
through legislation". That was the message in an article written jointly by
Prime MinisterGöran Persson and the chair of the Swedish Metal Workers'
Union, Göran Johnsson, and published in the evening paper /Aftonbladet/ on
28 April 1997. Considering that one of the authors is the Prime Minister of
Sweden, it could be seen as a veiled threat to the employers. In the 1997
bargaining round, several trade unions called for a cut in working hours, and
the employers consistently rejected them.
The first annual review of the social dialogue process at the European Union
level was adopted by the Commission on 6 May 1997. The review characterises
1996 as "a particularly fruitful and productive year" for the social dialogue
at European level. Despite this overall positive assessment, the review
highlights the fact that, despite endeavours towards the establishment of a
dialogue between the social partners, and in some cases, negotiation, this
represents only the background of a European-scale industrial relations
systems which is yet to take shape.
The first of the two recently-announced mergers, which is to take effect from
1 July 1997, is between the National and Provincial Building Society Staff
Association (NAPSA) and the Banking, Insurance and Finance Union (BIFU). The
National and Provincial Building Society was recently taken over by the Abbey
National, but NAPSA members voted to become part of BIFU rather than the
Abbey National's own staff association. Despite the strong support for BIFU
from NAPSA members, the company has refused to recognise the union. BIFU said
that "in the merger and conversion mania which is sweeping this country there
is little regard for the impact on staff. They are the casualties - that's
why it is important for unions to work together". BIFU, which has 115,000
members, hope that this will be the first of many mergers which will ensure
it a stronger role in the financial sector.
One of the most significant transformations of British industrial relations
in recent years has been the shift from national to enterprise-level
bargaining. Multi-employer bargaining arrangements have tended to be replaced
with multi-establishment, single employer bargaining, although there are also
signs of decentralisation within the individual firm. Similarly, within the
public sector (UK9702104F [1]), efforts have been made to fragment
traditional bargaining arrangements through the introduction of "Agency"
status and market-testing to the civil service and local authorities, and by
further institutional decentralisation through the promotion of National
Health Service (NHS) Trusts and local management of schools. These changes
have occurred alongside a dramatic decline in coverage of collective
bargaining, largely due to the decline of manufacturing employment and the
expansion of the service sector.
On 7 May 1997, a preliminary agreement (which requires ratification) was
signed for the renewal of the Italian national railworkers' contract. The new
contract, which comes into effect from January 1997 and will expire on 31
December 1999, deals with company recovery plans and pay.
A frequently repeated statement in discussion on industrial relations is that
temporary employment will be much more common in the future. This assumption
is refuted in a recent report from the National Labour Market Board
(Arbetsmarknadsstyrelsen,AMS).
An agreement on resolving labour disputes out of court was signed in January
1996 by Spain's largest unions (UGT and CC.OO) and employers' associations
(CEOE and CEPYME), covering the period until 31 December 2000. The agreement
built on the experience in mediation and arbitration at a regional level that
had grown on the basis of joint quasi-judicial institutions formed in the
1990s. We review the complex system which now applies in this area.
Eurofound’s European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2003, the first edition of the survey.
Eurofound's European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2007, the second edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2003.
Eurofound's European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2012, the third edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2003.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the EWCS 2005, the fourth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the EWCS 2010, the fifth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
This publication series explores scenarios for the future of manufacturing. The employment implications (number of jobs by sector, occupation, wage profile, and task content) under various possible scenarios are examined. The scenarios focus on various possible developments in global trade and energy policies and technological progress and run to 2030.
The fifth round of Eurofound's e-survey, fielded from 25 March to 2 May 2022, sheds light on the social and economic situation of people across Europe two years after COVID-19 was first detected on the European continent. It also explores the reality of living in a new era of uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine, inflation, and rising energy prices.
As part of a process to collect information on essential services, the European Commission (DG EMPL) requested Eurofound to provide input on certain aspects of existing and planned measures in the Member States to improve access to essential services, in reference to Principle 20 of the European Pillar of Social Rights. The scope of the exercise included energy services, public transport and digital communications, and the focus was on people at risk of poverty or social exclusion (in practice, people on low incomes in most cases).
This report will map the existing regulations on telework in European Union Member States, including in legislation and collective agreements. It will present the most recent changes to these regulations and shed light on how the future of (tele)work could be regulated at both national and EU level, in order to improve working conditions in telework arrangements and reduce the risks associated with telework and with specific ways of working remotely.
The civil aviation sector has been deeply impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is one of the most severe crises the sector has ever experienced, giving rise to a number of significant challenges for companies and workers alike. This study will explore the role of social dialogue and collective bargaining in how the sector is adapting to the pandemic. What kinds of changes have been introduced, either through social dialogue or collective bargaining? Are the changes temporary or permanent?
This report explores the association between skills use and skills strategies and establishment performance, and how other workplace practices, in terms of work organisation, human resources management and employee involvement, can impact on this. It looks at how skills shortages can be addressed, at least in part, by creating an environment in which employees are facilitated and motivated to make better use of the skills they already have. This further supports the business case for a more holistic approach to management.
This report focuses on trends and developments in collective bargaining that were evident from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. It examines potential new strategic approaches and priorities incorporated in negotiation agendas, as well as collective bargaining practices and coordination at sector and company levels in the private sector.
This policy brief will provide an update on upward convergence in the economic, social and institutional dimensions of the European Union, as outlined in the European Pillar of Social Rights and its accompanying Social Scoreboard.
Between 2021 and 2023 Eurofound is carrying out a pilot project on minimum wage on behalf of the European Commission. The question of how minimum wages and other forms of pay can be fixed for the self-employed is investigated as a part of this project through mapping national and sectoral approaches. Out of concern for the challenging conditions that the self-employed face, some Member States have established or are discussing establishing statutory forms of minimum pay for certain categories of self-employed.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the electricity sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements. The aim of this Eurofound study on representativeness is to identify the relevant national and European social partner organisations in the electricity sector in the EU Member States.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the gas sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements. The aim of this Eurofound’s study on representativeness is to identify the relevant national and European social partner organisations in the gas sector in the EU Member States.
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