Testing 1,2,3 Minimum wages in Austria are known as "collective agreement wages" because they are set by collective bargaining rather than by law, though it is unlawful to pay less than the collective agreement wage. Because of the large number of collective agreements concluded independently of

The Austrian Trade Union Federation (Österreichischer Gewerkschaftsbund, ÖGB) and the Austrian Chamber of the Economy (Wirtschaftskammer Österreich, WKÖ) agreed the outlines of a reform of the apprenticeship system on 1 March 1997. The precise details are to be agreed in a working group comprising

For the first time since 1960, the Belgian social partners have failed to reach an intersectoral pay agreement and have instead accepted government imposition of measures on employment and maximum pay increases. This development runs counter to all traditions of free collective bargaining and the

On Sunday 2 February 1997, a so-called "multicoloured march for jobs" drew about 50,000 people from all over Belgium to the streets of Clabecq, a small industrial town on the borders of the provinces of Brabant and Hainaut.

It is expected that the fate of the Forges de Clabecq steelworks will be sealed on 15 June 1997. However, whatever the outcome of the recovery operation by the Swiss-Italian industrial concern, Duferco, something will have changed in this Belgian enterprise located some 15 miles from Brussels in the

This action, which came as a complete surprise to the 3,100 employees, is part of the French-owned motor manufacturer's "new industrial strategy" of concentrating production to cut its financial losses. Michel de Virville, managing director of Renault, announced the closure adding that: