Publications

Promoting uptake of parental and paternity leave among fathers in the European Union

• 25 February 2015
• Customised report

The take-up rate of parental and paternity leave among fathers has been increasing in most Member States but it still remains relatively low. Covering all the EU Member States and Norway, this report looks at the most recent trends in terms of take-up of parental and paternity leave, existing provisions and factors influencing take-up rates.

• Cabrita, Jorge; Wohlgemuth, Felix EurWORK Collective bargaining, Enakost spolov, Odnosi med delodajalci in delojemalci, Leave, Social partners, Working conditions

Austria: Free time option in collective agreements

• 25 February 2015
• Article

In 2013, a new, innovative element was introduced in collective bargaining in Austria – the so-called free time option. Two sectoral-level collective agreements concluded in 2013, in the electronics and mining and steel sectors, included for the first time the option of converting pay rises into extra time off work.

• Krenn, Manfred EurWORK Collective bargaining, Working conditions, Odnosi med delodajalci in delojemalci

Ireland: Workplace Relations Commission moves closer to establishment

• 25 February 2015
• Article

Ireland's new Workplace Relations Bill establishes a Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) which will subsume the functions of the Labour Relations Commission, National Employment Rights Authority, Equality Tribunal and Employment Appeals Tribunal. The WRC will deal with complaints at first instance, and an expanded Labour Court will deal with cases on appeal from the WRC.

• Sheehan, Brian EurWORK Industrial action, Industrial action, Employment relationship, Labour law, Odnosi med delodajalci in delojemalci, Labour and social regulation

Estonia: Government to strengthen role of labour dispute committees

• 25 February 2015
• Article

Estonia is in the process of renewing several labour regulations. The Ministry of Social Affairs announced its intention in July 2014 to develop a new Individual Dispute Resolution Act. The aim is to remove the limitations present in the existing act by improving the quality and efficiency of labour dispute committees by increasing their role and capacity.

• Osila, Liina EurWORK Industrial action, Industrial action, Odnosi med delodajalci in delojemalci, Labour and social regulation

Violence and harassment in European workplaces: Extent, impacts and policies

• 24 February 2015
• CAR

Violence and harassment are attacks on personal dignity, the right to equal and non-discriminatory treatment and often a person’s health. Workers affected by it feel insecure about their work; they are more frequently absent and may even be unable to work, with consequent impacts on productivity and corporate and public costs. Some national-level surveys point to a long-standing increase in reported violence and harassment. Certain European countries, such as the Scandinavian countries, have more coordinated, established policies on preventing and tackling violence and harassment. Awareness of the topic at the national level, its inclusion in legislation and the degree of the social partners’ involvement in policies and interventions all contribute to the effectiveness of policies to address it.

• EurWORK Enakost spolov, Health and well-being at work, Sustainable work, Working conditions

Estonia: Employment register to tackle undeclared work

• 20 February 2015
• Article

Since 1 July 2014, all workers in Estonia, whether paid or working on a voluntary basis, are obliged to be registered by their employers. During the first few months of the new registration system, an extra €5.1 million of tax revenue was collected. The register is also being used to determine eligibility for certain allowances and benefits.

• Kadarik, Ingel EurWORK Fraudulent work, Working conditions, Spremembe na trgu dela

Hungary: Working poor, minimum wage and minimum income

• 20 February 2015
• Article

In Hungary, roughly one million working people – a quarter of the employed population – were paid below the official minimum subsistence level in 2013. Hungarian trade union confederations, the Democratic League of Independent Trade Unions (LIGA) and the Hungarian Trade Unions Confederation (MASZSZ), have proposed making the net minimum wage equal to the minimum subsistence level.

• Kiss, Ambrus EurWORK Odnosi med delodajalci in delojemalci, Minimalne plače, Plače in dohodki, Working conditions, Working poor

Hungary: Are managers overestimating the efficiency of software solutions?

• 20 February 2015
• Article

Company managers tend to overestimate the role of software, according to a study which finds some enterprise resource planning systems can even hamper a company’s most productive sectors. Many workers also do not realise that they might have to work longer because of extra time spent in meetings or responding to emails.

• Belyó, Pál EurWORK Work organisation, Working conditions, Odnosi med delodajalci in delojemalci

Sweden: Wage setting outside collective agreements

• 20 February 2015
• Article

A new study examines Sweden's wage formation process and how different types of collective agreement affect it. It concludes that wage formation in practice is often less localised than collective agreements allow for and that the norm-setting ‘cost mark’ set by the industrial sector is still important for determining the level of wage increases.

• Kullander, Mats; Danielsson, Petter EurWORK Plače in dohodki, Plače in dohodki, Plače in dohodki, Plače in dohodki, Plače in dohodki, Plače in dohodki, Plače in dohodki, Collective bargaining, Collective bargaining, Working conditions, Odnosi med delodajalci in delojemalci

Greece: Voluntary intermunicipal mobility scheme

• 20 February 2015
• Article

A voluntary 'intermunicipal mobility' scheme in Greece for employees was to start in February 2014 and end in April 2014. The scheme aimed to transfer 3,000 permanent local government employees to new posts. It took extra time to be fully completed and faced some opposition, but the target of 3,000 transfers was met.

• Georgiadou, Penny EurWORK Work organisation, Working conditions