Labour law

Under the terms of the Works Constitution Act [1] (Betriebsverfassungsgesetz, §§ 111f), a procedure known as "reconcilement of interests [2]" (Interessenausgleich) aims at reconciling the positions of the employer and the workforce in case of a proposed substantial alteration of the establishment

After a legal battle lasting more than three years between the management of La Samaritaine (one of the five large Paris department stores), and its works council and CGT union branch, two rulings by the highest court in the French legal system on 13 February 1997, imposed the reinstatement of staff

Health and safety at work has arisen as a very serious matter of social concern over recent years and has become a focus of interest for both the state and the social institutions concerned. The magnitude and complexity of the problem and the need to find direct and effective solutions have induced

The 1994 labour market reform led to a spectacular increase in part-time employment contracts, which had hardly been used in Spain before that time. This feature describes this development and points out the main characteristics of the workers employed under these contracts, who are mainly women.

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

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

Late in 1996, Parliament passed legislation providing for changes in the Employment Security Act that aroused the anger of the trade unions. Although most of the new provisions apply from 1 January 1997, the most controversial modification, in Section 2 of the Act, will not come into force until 1

On 19 February, Arbio, the employers' association for the forestry industry, sued the Swedish Paper Workers' Union before the Labour Court. Formally, the parties are arguing over a sum of less than SEK 50, though in practice the case concerns an unlimited amount of money. This is a test case, and