PRESS RELEASE (4 February) The European Council will discuss Europe´s energy strategy till 2020 today. The European Federation of Public Services Unions demands that the Council develops a coherent energy policy with clear social and sustainable priorities in the line with the European Trade Union Congress (ETUC) position on Energy Strategy for Europe 2011-2020 (http://www.etuc.org/a/7952) The EU strategy must lay the cornerstones for an EU policy closely linking the economy, society and (...)

Press Communication - for immediate release – 18 November 2010
The European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) demands to the European Commission to change its strategy towards the training of the workforce in the energy sector.
The European Commission published its new Energy Strategy 2020, 11 November and its Infrastructure Package yesterday. This Energy strategy was published following a process of consultation earlier this year. The results are disappointing. The Commission (...)

New first ever report finds that European Works Councils are poorly informed and consulted on their company’s CSR policies
Joint EPSU – SOMO full Press Release - 9 June 2010
European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) - Stichting Onderzoek Multionationale Ondernemingen (SOMO)
The report is published on the occasion of the final meeting of EPSU (and SDA) project on Learning and practicing – a project for the European Energy sector by which EWCs compared their work and methods. All (...)

Press Communication
(23 June 2009) The European trade unions and Eurelectric for the companies and employers signed a joint statement on Corporate Social Responsibility, 22 June 2009. The social partners underline the importance of CSR for the electricity industry, the positive attitude towards trade unions that is required and encourage the use of common reporting standards as defined by the Global Reporting Initiative and in particular the recent supplement on the electricity industry. It (...)

Press Communication, 18 June 2009
(18 June 2009, Dusseldorf) Thousands of Energy workers assemble today for a protest at the Annual General Meeting of energy Company EON. The protest is organised by German Union Verdi. Under the slogan ‘we are one’, appropriated from EON publicity material, the Union organisers are staging an action day to condemn EON management refusal to provide guarantees on jobs and training. Union sources have also discovered that EON management has not ruled out (...)

Ministers ignore European Parliament recommendations for safer standards
(5 June Brussels, 2009) EPSU has learned that European Energy Ministers are due to sign off on a lower set of Nuclear Safety provisions than that recommended by the European Parliament. The position (seen by EPSU) reveals that the opinion of the European Parliament has been ignored [1]. (. The Parliament had argued that a high level of nuclear safety should be achieved and that therefore the Safety Standards of the (...)

Press Communication, 14 May 2009
European energy trade unions meeting in Luxembourg today highlight stark contrast between increased share returns and falling wages (14 May 2009, Luxembourg) On the eve of a weekend of mass union demonstrations throughout Europe, a report by public service trade union federation EPSU has revealed a stark trend among the sector’s main employers, showing the wages bill falling as a share of profits and dividends. The EPSU energy unions have released the (...)

(3 February, 2009, Brussels) The decision of the European Commission to launch an investigation into energy markets due to high consumer dissatisfaction (2 February) is a “stunning denial of their own role in causing this mess”, according to EPSU Deputy General Secretary Jan Willem Goudriaan. He added that it is: “precisely the Commission liberalisation of the energy market which has lead to massive concentration of ownership, and high prices for private and business users”.
He commented (...)

Press Communication, 5 June 2008 The European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) has called on the EU Council of Energy Ministers to pull back from the ‘grave error’ of forced ownership unbundling in the sector. EU energy ministers are set to discuss far-reaching proposals for energy companies on 6 June. EPSU has warned that Ministers run the risk of swinging a wrecking ball at the sector in a time of growing (...)

Press Communication, 27 February 2008
If you are in a hole stop digging" say energy workers to Council (27 February 2008, Brussels) The European Commission is obsessed with ownership unbundling and criticises Member States for protection of domestic households at a time when electricity and gas prices increase, jobs in the sector are lost, investment in new capacity is lagging behind, mergers and take-overs cost tens of billions of Euros and most States in the USA have halted their (...)