Commenting on European Commission’s announcement today on the Written Statement Directive, ETUC General Secretary Luca Visentini said “The ETUC welcomes the European Commission taking forward its proposal for a revision of the Written Statement Directive. The European Commission’s proposals are a decent basis for discussion. The ETUC has engaged constructively from the outset in this debate, and will be warning the Commission to keep clear of time-wasting by anyone who wants to kill this proposal.

Workers in 11 central and eastern EU countries are paid up to €944 less per month than workers in Germany when costs of living are taken into account, according to a study published today by the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI).   Shockingly, the difference in net monthly wages, when adjusted for the composition of the workforce and structure of the economy, is larger than when only costs of living are considered.   

Tomorrow, Thursday 21 September, the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) will be provisionally applied: over 90 percent of the deal’s provisions will begin taking effect tomorrow, but matters such as investment protection and the new investment court system, requiring unanimous approval by EU member states, will have to wait. The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) has been pressing with the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) for improvements throughout the long negotiations.

Dear readers, We are pleased to launch the latest edition of our National UPdates newsletter, showcasing a range of trade union activities in different countries, and focusing on how unions at national as well as EU level are working to promote social progress and justice in Europe, in collaboration with employers, governments and civil society organisations. In the context of the ETUC #OurPayRise campaign, trade unions are also advancing the living standards of workers in different parts of the EU.

Commenting on the European Commission’s renewed Industrial Policy Strategy, published today, Peter Scherrer, Deputy General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) said: “The ETUC has long called for a new EU industrial strategy, and welcomes the fact that the European Commission has now published ‘A renewed Industrial Policy strategy’.

The European Court of Justice today ruled that Ryanair workers based in Belgium could take legal proceedings before Belgian courts, regardless of the fact that Ryanair claimed that the contracts are “subject to Irish law” and “Irish courts had jurisdiction”. Welcoming the judgement, the European Trade Union Confederation’s Esther Lynch said “It is not for employers to choose which countries’ laws they wish to obey. The law of the land where the person is working should apply.”

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) joins with its global counterpart, the ITUC, in condemning the politically motivated campaign against the Georgian Trade Union Confederation (GTUC) and its President Irakli Petriashvili, launched by political forces aligned with the Georgian government. The ETUC works in partnership with the GTUC within the Pan-European Regional Council (PERC) of the ITUC and through the EU-Georgia Association Agreement.

Commenting on President Juncker’s State of the Union speech today, Luca Visentini, General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation said “The speech painted a rosy picture of economic recovery and was too light on proposals for social justice. “His references to climate action and digitalisation for example expressed no concern about potential job losses, or the need to manage the social and employment impacts. That’s alarming and dangerous.

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) welcomes the judgment today of the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in favour of a worker's right to privacy and restricting employers' right to monitor workers electronic communications. The ETUC have intervened in support of the case because of its broader privacy and employment implications for workers.

MEPs are being urged by trade unions back an agreement, between the European Council and Parliament (and supported this week by the Parliament’s Employment Committee), to give workers more and better protection against occupational cancer.

Tomorrow Luca Visentini, General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation, will meet French Labour Minister, Muriel Pénicaud, to discuss the revision of the Posting of Workers Directive. It follows an earlier meeting between Luca Visentini and President Macron on July 21 https://www.etuc.org/press/trade-unions-meet-french-president-paris and meetings with Ministers from other countries on posting including the Estonian and Maltese Presidencies.

People working in countries in the east of the EU earn well under half of the average wage of people in the western, pre-2004 EU15 according to research published today. Workers in 10 east EU countries earn between 42% of west EU wages (in Estonia) to under 18% (in Bulgaria). Only in Slovenia do working people earn more than half, with wages at 60% of the EU 15 average. The east-west EU wage gap was getting smaller through the late 1990s and much of 2000s, but progress stopped in the 2008 economic crisis.