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Agreements

Agreements are the outcome of collective bargaining and social dialogue processes. Social partners are encouraged to negotiate and conclude collective agreements  that can then be implemented at European, national, regional, sectoral or company level.  Increasingly Union labour laws are shaped by agreements that the parties voluntarily enter into and by soft law mechanisms. 

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Minimum wages for low-paid workers in collective agreements

In this pilot project, Eurofound successfully established the feasibility of, and piloted, an EU-wide database of minimum pay rates contained in collective agreements related to low-paid workers. A conceptual and...

26 Gennaio 2024
Publication
Research report

Eurofound expert(s)

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Christine Aumayr-Pintar

Christine Aumayr-Pintar is a senior research manager in the Working Life unit at Eurofound. Her current research topics include minimum wages, collectively agreed wages and gender...

Senior research manager,
Working life research unit
Publications results (40)
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Minimum wages for low-paid workers in collective agreements

In this pilot project, Eurofound successfully established the feasibility of, and piloted, an EU-wide database of minimum pay rates contained in collective agreements related to low-paid workers. A conceptual and measurement framework was devised, a total of 692 collective agreements – related to 24

26 January 2024
Publication
Research report
Minimum wage
Pay and income
Collective bargaining
Agreements
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Diritto alla disconnessione: attuazione e impatto a livello aziendale

This report explores EU Member States’ legislation around the right to disconnect and assesses the impact of company policies in this area on employees’ hours of connection, working time, work–life balance, health and well-being, and overall workplace satisfaction.

30 November 2023
Publication
Research report
Orario di lavoro
Equilibrio tra vita professionale e vita privata
Condizioni di lavoro e lavoro sostenibile
Telelavoro
Working conditions
Agreements
Labour and social regulation

Orario di lavoro nel periodo 2021–2022

This report examines the average weekly working hours across Europe in 2021 and 2022. It covers important developments resulting from legislative reforms in collective bargaining at national or sectoral level, drawing on debates about the reduction of working time and the four-day working week.

24 October 2023
Publication
Research report
Orario di lavoro
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Leave
Relazioni industriali e dialogo sociale
Equilibrio tra vita professionale e vita privata
Working conditions

L’aspetto etico della digitalizzazione sul luogo di lavoro: dalla teoria alla pratica

Automation and digitisation technologies, including artificial intelligence, are rapidly evolving and becoming increasingly powerful and pervasive. The full range of their effects in the workplace is yet to be seen. It is, however, important not only to explore the ethical implications of digital te

12 September 2023
Publication
Research report
Prevedere e gestire l’impatto dei cambiamenti
L’era digitale: opportunità e sfide per il lavoro e l’occupazione
Working conditions
Dialogo sociale
Agreements
Skills and training
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Contrastare l’aumento dell’inflazione nella contrattazione salariale collettiva settoriale

After a long period of price stability, inflation has made a remarkable comeback in the EU. In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the energy crisis spurred by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the disruption of the international supply chain, among other factors, have driven up the

06 September 2023
Publication
Research report
Relazioni industriali e dialogo sociale
Salario minimo
Collective bargaining
Agreements
Retribuzione e reddito
Relazioni industriali
Dialogo sociale
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Supporting regions in the just transition: Role of social partners

This report investigates the involvement of social partners in the just transition to a climate-neutral economy, with a particular focus on the territorial just transition plans. These plans aim to support the regions most negatively affected by the just transition by assisting workers to retrain

19 July 2023
Publication
Research report
Skills and training
Social partners
European Green Deal
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Just transition
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Regolamentazione dei salari minimi e di altre forme di retribuzione per i lavoratori autonomi

La presente relazione è realizzata nel contesto del progetto pilota triennale (2021-2023), «Ruolo del salario minimo nell’istituzione della Garanzia universale per i lavoratori», commissionato a Eurofound dalla Commissione europea. È incentrata sul modulo 3 del progetto, che esamina i salari minimi

30 November 2022
Publication
Research report
Retribuzione e reddito
Salario minimo
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Labour and social regulation
Relazioni industriali e dialogo sociale
Relazioni industriali
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Challenges and solutions: Case studies on European Works Councils

This working paper investigates the practical implementation of the European Works Council (EWC) Directive at company level. It explores the challenges faced by existing EWCs and provides examples of solutions identified and remaining issues from the point of view of both workers and management. In

25 October 2022
Publication
Other
Social dialogue
European Pillar of Social Rights
Employee representation
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations
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Telelavoro nell’UE: quadri normativi e aggiornamenti recenti

La relazione si propone di mappare e analizzare la legislazione e la contrattazione collettiva sul telelavoro nei 27 Stati membri e in Norvegia, evidenziando le principali differenze e analogie tra le legislazioni dei vari paesi e le modifiche apportatevi di recente. Esamina inoltre l’attuale

01 September 2022
Publication
Research report
Orario di lavoro
Working conditions
Telelavoro
Equilibrio tra vita professionale e vita privata
Work organisation
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Labour and social regulation
Relazioni industriali e dialogo sociale
Relazioni industriali
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Stare al passo coi tempi: prassi e clausole emergenti in materia di contrattazione collettiva

La presente relazione analizza i recenti sviluppi e le prassi emergenti, soprattutto nel settore privato, a livello di procedure ed esiti della contrattazione collettiva, soffermandosi sui relativi meccanismi adottati in 10 Stati membri dell’UE e basandosi su casi individuati mediante colloqui con

31 August 2022
Publication
Research report
Dialogo sociale
European Pillar of Social Rights
Agreements
Collective bargaining
COVID-19
Relazioni industriali e dialogo sociale
Relazioni industriali
Online resources results (321)

Rescue workers get better collective agreement

Due to the economic crisis, the government had to make major cutbacks in the state budget in 2009, forcing the Estonian Rescue Board (Päästeamet [1]) in turn to cut its budget. This led to an 8% cut in salary for rescue workers, border guards and police officers as of 1 July 2009. The collective

28 Marzo 2011
Article
Collective bargaining
Pay and income
Agreements
Working conditions
Industrial relations
Working conditions and sustainable work
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Health social partners agree recruitment and retention framework

The European-level social partners in the hospitals and healthcare sector are the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU [1]) and the European Hospital and Healthcare Employers’ Association (HOSPEEM [2]). Their formal sectoral dialogue [3] which began in 2006 (*EU0610039I* [4]) has led

24 Marzo 2011
Article
Agreements
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Government, regions and social partners agree to relaunch apprenticeships

In the Italian labour market, unemployment levels for the young are among the highest in the EU. In December 2010, 29% of people between 15 and 24 were unemployed. This figure is three times higher than average unemployment level in the EU for the same period (8.6%).

23 Marzo 2011
Article
Agreements
Skills and training
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

2010 bargaining round examined

In January 2011, the Collective Agreement Archive (WSI-Tarifarchiv [1]) of the Institute of Economic and Social Research (WSI [2]) within the Hans Böckler Foundation (HBS [3]) issued a press release (in German) [4] summarising the findings of its report on the 2010 collective bargaining [5] round.

14 Marzo 2011
Article
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Pay and income
Working conditions
Industrial relations
Working conditions and sustainable work
Industrial relations and social dialogue

GDF Suez launches international social dialogue

On 16 November 2011, the management of GDF Suez signed a global agreement on fundamental rights, social dialogue and sustainable development (529Kb PDF) [1] with three international union federations – the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers’ Unions (ICEM [2]), the

7 Marzo 2011
Article
Agreements
Social dialogue
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Strike action suspended nationwide

At an all-trade union congress held on 13 December 2010, the leaders of the Pancyprian Public Employees’ Trade Union (PASYDY [1]), the Pancyprian Federation of Labour (PEO [2]) and the Cyprus Workers’ Confederation (SEK [3]) proposed that strikes that had been announced for mid-December 2010 be

24 Febbraio 2011
Article
Agreements
Industrial action
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

TNT Post and unions agree to halve the number of forced redundancies

After four weeks of sporadic strikes each lasting up to several days, TNT Post [1] and the trade unions reached agreement in principle on the overall number of job losses at TNT. The number of redundancies will be almost halved from 4,500 to 2,300. In the end, TNT withdrew its initial demand that

16 Febbraio 2011
Article
Agreements
Restructuring
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Bank of Scotland Ireland agreement on staff transfer

Bank of Scotland Ireland (BOSI [1]) announced in August 2010 that it would be winding down its remaining operations in Ireland and some 800 employees would be transferred to an independent service company. Earlier in 2010, 750 workers were made redundant from the bank due to a combination of the

10 Febbraio 2011
Article
Agreements
Restructuring
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Accordo separato su deroghe al contratto nazionale dei metalmeccanici

Il 29 settembre 2010 è stato siglato un accordo che permette di definire deroghe al contratto nazionale di categoria a livello aziendale. L’intesa è stata concordata senza la Fiom-Cgil la federazione di categoria più rappresentativa nel settore, che ha contestato l’accordo con 4 ore di sciopero e

27 Gennaio 2011
Article
Agreements
Industrial action
Relazioni industriali
Relazioni industriali e dialogo sociale

Bank workers brought into public welfare scheme

The banking sector used to have a large number of employees who were not automatically part of the General Social Security Scheme (RGSS). Their benefits came instead from employee and company pension schemes. Moreover, pension entitlements set by collective agreements in the banking industry have

27 Gennaio 2011
Article
Agreements
Social protection
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Blogs results (2)
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How to ensure adequate minimum wages in an age of inflation

Minimum wages have risen significantly in 2022, as the EU Member States leave behind the cautious mood of the pandemic. However, rising inflation is eating up these wage increases, and only flexibility in the regular minimum wage setting processes may avoid generalised losses in purchasing power

15 Giugno 2022
Carlos Vacas‑Soriano
Blog
Pay and income
Minimum wage
Agreements
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations
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Does the new telework generation need a right to disconnect?

Whatever the benefits of telework – and there are many, including more flexible working time, increased productivity and less commuting – there are drawbacks, as many of the one-third of Europeans who were exclusively working from home during the pandemic will attest. Primary among these is the ‘alw

3 Dicembre 2020
Oscar Vargas Llave
Blog
Working conditions and sustainable work
Work-life balance
Collective bargaining
Agreements
Digitalisation
Teleworking
Labour and social regulation
Anticipating and managing the impact of change

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