TRADE UNIONS EUROPEAN ACTION DAYS: 350,000 PEOPLE IN THE STREETS TO DEMAND ACTION FOR EMPLOYMENT

ETUC Press release on Euro-demonstrations

Brussels, 16 May 2009

Some 350,000 people have just taken the streets of Madrid, Brussels, Berlin and Prague to support the European Trade Union Confederations
(ETUC) Action Days.

Demonstrators are demanding more ambitious and more courageous action by Europe and national governments to help the growing armies of unemployed. They also demand that never again can the excesses of financial capitalism to be allowed to wreck the world economy.

ETUC General Secretary, John Monks, said: The size of these Euro-demonstrations reveals the widespread concerns for the future.
The world of financial capitalism seems to assume that after a few green shoots of recovery, it will be soon business as usual for them despite their recent heart attack. But they are still on life support provided by Europe s tax payers, and never again can greed and selfishness be allowed to cause damage of amounts of trillions of euros. Tighter regulation of financial markets is needed now and more workers influence on boardrooms. Workers want life support systems for industry and jobs too, and ambitious action to help the fight against growing unemployment. That s the message from the streets across Europe this week.

See ETUC photo gallery of the Euro-demonstrations in Madrid , Brussels , Berlin and Prague .

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) speaks with a single voice on behalf of the common interests of workers, at European level. Founded in 1973, it now represents 82 trade union organisations in 36 European countries, plus 12 industry-based federations.

- Please see the photos gallery