On 21 May 1997, after five bargaining rounds, the miners' trade union
Industriegewerkschaft Bergbau und Energie (IGBE), the salaried employees'
union Deutsche Angestelltengewerkschaft (DAG) and the Unternehmensverband
Ruhrbergbau (UVR) employers' association for the hard-coal mining industry in
Northrhine-Westphalia, concluded a pilot agreement which covers roughly
75,000 employees in the Northrhine-Westphalia hard-coal mining industry. The
framework for the contents of the agreement was partly set by the "coal
compromise" of 13 March 1997 (DE9703104F [1]).
Jarmo Lähteenmäki, the chair of the Finnish Paperworkers' Union- one of the
most powerful unions in the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions
(SAK) - announced after a meeting on 11 June 1997 that the union will not
enter national negotiations on incomes policy. Instead, "the Paperworkers'
Union will focus directly on talks with individual unions" - ie, it will
engage only in direct industry-level negotiations with employers in its
sector. The union cited special problems in its sector which prevented it
from participating in comprehensive national incomes policy discussions, such
as the utilisation of outside labour in factories, the move to shorten
working hours, the contracting-out of different factory operations, and the
decision by two of the largest firms in the forestry industry to discontinue
personnel funds (a form of profit-sharing scheme).
Over May-June 1997, the dialogue between the Italian Government, trade unions
and employers has been extended to welfare reform and policies related to EU
Economic and Monetary Union (EMU).
The Portuguese electricity utility, EDP, is being partially privatised and
one of the unions involved in the sector, Sinergia, has taken the innovative
step of subscribing to the share issue.
The high priority currently given to budget consolidation has been translated
by the Austrian Government into, among other measures, a need to limit
increases in civil service costs - currently ATS 215 billion per year - to no
more than 1.3% annually. The Government is trying to achieve this aim by
reducing the number of civil service employees, keeping salary increases
moderate in real terms, and reducing pensions.
The Norwegian labour market parties have, during spring 1997, been commenting
on the proposed principles for a revision of the Labour Dispute Act. The
committee which reviewed the Act proposed a strengthening of the
confederations' position with regard to collective bargaining. Although the
Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) and the Confederation of
Norwegian Business and Industry (NHO) basically support the proposal, there
is significant opposition to it, particularly from several employee
organisations.
The eradication of bullying at school has long been an important aim, and
even though it still occurs, there is a genuine wish to stamp it out.
However, relatively few people are aware of the seriousness of bullying
within the workplace. Surveys have been highlighting this point for a long
time - the table below provides some recent examples - but now at last it
seems that the social partners are beginning to realise the hidden costs of
bullying, and attempting to wipe it out.
On 3 March 1997, the Hanover regional branch of the metalworkers' trade union
Industriegewerkschaft Metall (IG Metall) and the management of PPS Personal-,
Produktions- und Servicegesellschaft mbH, Salzgitter, concluded a company
agreement on partial retirement - the first such agreement in the
metalworking industry. Negotiations between IG Metall and the metalworking
employers' association Gesamtverband der metallindustriellen
Arbeitgeberverbände (Gesamtmetall), first about industry-wide and later
about regional collective agreements on partial retirement, reached an
impasse in June 1997. Although the agreement at PPS was signed in March,
reliable information has only recently been publicised.
After the publication of the reports on EMU by the expert working party
commissioned by the Government and by the economists in the incomes policy
assessment committee, the labour market organisations issued a statement on
the impact of EMU on the Finnish labour market on 22 May 1997 (FI9705115N
[1]). The most influential advocate of EMU is the President of Finland,
Martti Ahtisaari who presented his views on the benefits of EMU for Finland
in his speech at the 90th anniversary meeting of the Central Organisation of
Finnish Trade Unions (SAK) on 24 May 1997.
Trade union unity and greater social dialogue were the key themes at the 13th
national congress of the Cisl union confederation, held in Rome on May 1997.
This series reports on the new forms of employment emerging across Europe that are driven by societal, economic and technological developments and are different from traditional standard or non-standard employment in a number of ways. This series explores what characterises these new employment forms and what implications they have for working conditions and the labour market.
The European Company Survey (ECS) is carried out every four to five years since its inception in 2004–2005, with the latest edition in 2019. The survey is designed to provide information on workplace practices to develop and evaluate socioeconomic policy in the EU. It covers issues around work organisation, working time arrangements and work–life balance, flexibility, workplace innovation, employee involvement, human resource management, social dialogue, and most recently also skills use, skills strategies and digitalisation.
The European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) is carried out every four to five years since its inception in 2003, with the latest edition in 2016. It examines both the objective circumstances of people's lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. It covers issues around employment, income, education, housing, family, health and work–life balance. It also looks at subjective topics, such as people's levels of happiness and life satisfaction, and perceptions of the quality of society.
This series brings together publications and other outputs of the European Jobs Monitor (EJM), which tracks structural change in European labour markets. The EJM analyses shifts in the employment structure in the EU in terms of occupation and sector and gives a qualitative assessment of these shifts using various proxies of job quality – wages, skill-levels, etc.
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 2016, the fourth 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 2015, the sixth 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 1996, the second 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 2001, which was an extension of the EWCS 2000 to cover the then 12 acceding and candidate countries. 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 2000, the third edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
Eurofound’s European Company Survey (ECS) maps and analyses company policies and practices which can have an impact on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, as well as the development of social dialogue in companies. This series consists of outputs from the first edition of the survey carried out in 2004–2005 under the name European Establishment Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the furniture 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 furniture 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 woodworking 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 woodworking sector in the EU Member States.
This report maps and analyses key dimensions and indicators of industrial relations in the EU. It expands on the four key indicators identified in Eurofound’s 2016 study: industry democracy, industrial competitiveness, job and employment equality, and social justice. With a key focus on industrial democracy, the report provides an in-depth analysis of divergence and convergence patterns across countries. The analysis also includes the development of a composite indicator and an integrated indicator for all four industrial relations dimensions.
Ensuring greater social protection for self-employed individuals has been the subject of much policy debate in recent years. In 2019, the European Council adopted a recommendation on access to social protection for workers and the self-employed. The sudden drops in income during the COVID-19 pandemic accentuated the vulnerability of self-employed workers. Using data from the European Working Conditions Telephone Survey, this report examines the working conditions of different groups of self-employed.
The report describes trends in social and economic discontent across the EU between 2002 and 2020, highlighting in particular the turbulent times brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. The report explores the evolution of social cohesion and its impact on economic and social discontent. It assesses the relationship between social cohesion and discontent during the pandemic, allowing for a comparison of the situation as it stands in 2023. The focus of the report is on regions where social cohesion is low, where a contrast is drawn with regions where social cohesion is much higher.
As part of its response to Russia’s war on Ukraine, the EU swiftly activated its Temporary Protection Directive for those fleeing the conflict in Ukraine, enabling displaced persons to settle in the EU and have access to the labour market and basic public services. There are many specific challenges facing EU Member States in terms of the process of receiving and integrating Ukrainian refugees. This report investigates three of these challenges: public attitudes towards the newly arrived refugees, integration efforts made at EU and Member State level, and access to public services.
The interaction between workers and machines has increased due to the rapid advancement of automation technologies. The new wave of robots can perform tasks with more flexibility, greater sophistication and in a way that protects workers’ physical safety. Drawing on case studies of advanced robotics, this report explores the benefits and risks that come with closer human–machine interaction, the organisational practices needed to deal with emerging issues and the real concerns and challenges.
The focus of this report is on the role that human capital plays in determining inequalities across the EU, as well as within Member States. Using Cedefop’s work in this area, the report provides a comparative analysis of national trends in education and lifelong learning, including differences between educational groups in terms of income, living conditions and health.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the extractive industries 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 extractive industries 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 construction 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 construction sector in the EU Member States.
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