The European Trade Union Confederation  (ETUC) welcomes the conclusion of the trilogue discussions on the Work-Life Balance Directive. The provisional agreement reached contains a number of positive elements, including paid paternity and parental leave, currently missing at EU level. Said ETUC General Secretary Luca Visentini, “Although we regret the lengthy implementation period set, we consider this first legislative output of the European Pillar of Social Rights to be  a positive signal to EU citizens that Social Europe is alive and back on track."

Tomorrow, EU Member States will discuss the Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions Directive at a decisive Coreper meeting that will steer the Council position in trilogue negotiations.

The final trilogue text of the new Framework Directive on Insolvency* comes as a great disappointment to the ETUC. Once again, European legislators have missed an opportunity to improve European-wide workers' participation rights in restructuring and insolvency procedures. 

Dear Readers, We have just published the December 2018 edition of the ETUC Newsletter. To read the document, please click here. Enjoy!

  Today the European Commission formally requested consultations with the Government of South Korea on the lack of implementation of fundamental labour rights. This is strongly welcomed by the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) which, together with the Federation of Korean Trade Unions and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, have pressed for a long time for consultations to be launched due to the poor situation of workers’ rights in South Korea.

On International Migrants Day, trade union leaders across Europe, representing 45 million members from 90 trade union organisations in 38 European countries, will reiterate their support for solidarity with migrants by backing the first European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) on migration. Trade union leaders showed their commitment by signing the ‘We Are a Welcoming Europe’ initiative at a high-level meeting of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC).

Dear comrades,   The warmest greetings from the ETUC and congratulations for the very important anniversary you are celebrating today. The right to strike is a fundamental human and social right, and an essential tool for trade unions to build their power for achieving stronger rights and better working conditions for working people. The right to strike has been recently under attack in several countries, particularly in Spain, and I would like to pay tribute to the extraordinary efforts you put in place to defend it.

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) welcomed a decision today by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe that should put an end to restrictions on collective bargaining for self-employed persons. The Ministers’ Committee’s decision endorses an earlier ruling by the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) following pressure by the Irish Trade Union Confederation (ICTU) and its affiliates, SIPTU, Equity, the Musicians Union of Ireland and National Union of Journalists, and supported by the ETUC.

"The ETUC condemns the attack in Strasbourg and expresses its sincere condolences to the victims and their families. We stand in solidarity with the people of France and with our French affiliates. Fear and terror will never undermine our strong commitment to peace, tolerance and democracy" says Luca Visentini, General Secretary of the European trade Union Confederation (ETUC).

Dear readers, Welcome to the December 2018 issue of Workers’ Voice National UPdates, highlighting how trade unions are acting for social progress and justice in Europe. While many EU countries are struggling to respond to extremist and nationalist movements, we take a look at the way unions are supporting Europe’s diverse population and combatting racism and fascism in the workplace and in society. With ETUC backing, the European Commission is currently updating a survey of trade union actions against discrimination.

Today MEPs on the European Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee voted on the Company Law Package. The Legal Affairs Committee decided that