The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) today called on EU leaders to support a budget for working people and not only increases in defence, security and external border control spending.
EU Heads of State & Government meet on Friday to discuss political priorities for the EU’s multiannual financial framework (MFF) after 2020.
The ETUC urges EU Presidents, Prime Ministers and Chancellors to look beyond the “narrow set” of European Commission “options” presented in their Communication on a “New and Modern” MFF last week.
A ground-breaking agreement between German trade union IG Metall and employers in the region of Baden-Württemburg sets a precedent likely to be followed across Germany, and gives a positive example for the whole of Europe.
The agreement includes a 4.3 % pay rise from April 2018, plus much greater flexibility including reduced working time to 28 hours for those who want or need it, and a choice for workers (with children still in education or caring for dependent parents) of an additional pay rise in 2019 or extra paid days off.
Commenting on the EU's guidelines for negotiating the Brexit transition arrangements*, adopted today by the General Affairs Council, ETUC Confederal Secretary Esther Lynch said
"It is in the interests of working people in the EU – including the UK - for the UK to stay in the single market and customs union until a new relationship is agreed.
"It is clear this means following all EU law, to guarantee a level playing field especially on workers’ rights, and paying into the budget.
During the four days that Chief Executive Officers from European companies attend the World Economic Forum in Davos next week, they will earn more than most people get in 18 months to two years.
According to figures on CEO pay-to-average-income from business news agency Bloomberg, in four days at Davos, CEOs
Commenting on the overturning of the sentence on LuxLeaks whistleblower Antoine Deltour by a Luxembourg Court, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) called for better and EU-wide protection of whistleblowers.
“People should be able to expose wrong-doing without fear of retribution,” said Esther Lynch, ETUC Confederal Secretary. “It is good that Antoine Deltour has had his sentence overturned, but he should not have been prosecuted in the first place.
Responding today to the European Commission’s proposal for a Directive on Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions, Esther Lynch, ETUC Confederal Secretary, welcomed some important improvements, although this reform is not the game-changer unions needed or expected.
Today, 20 December, the social and economic partners took part in the signing ceremony of a partnership agreement with the European Commission on integrating refugees into EU labour markets.
“We aim to combine our efforts with those of each Member State in alleviating the migration crisis,” said Luca Visentini, General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation. “It is vital to ensure inclusive paths and equal treatment for refugees and asylum-seekers in the labour market and society.
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled today that Uber is a transport service provider and not merely a smartphone application. The European Trade Union Confederation warmly welcomes this logical judgement.
According to the CJEU, this means “Member States can therefore regulate the conditions for providing that service”.
Ten years after the disastrous anti-worker Laval ruling by the European Court of Justice – on 18 December 2007 – the European Trade Union Confederation says the European Pillar of Social Rights obliges the EU to repair the damage caused.
