Social Services, Transparency & Corruption, Central government, Europe, Armenia

The Eurofound research agency has published a policy brief which underlines the need to tackle poor job quality among a range of essential occupations, including in the health and care, food systems, cleaning and refuse, transport and protective services sectors, along with manual workers in general. The report argues that these workers’ health and well-being were at risk during the COVID-19 pandemic and continue to be post-pandemic contributing to the labour shortages that persist in these sectors. The policy brief says that critical occupations facing staff shortages, such as jobs in health

Over the first six months of the years many of EPSU’s affiliates in health and social care have been active in negotiating, mobilising and taking action to secure improvements in pay and conditions for their members. With understaffing a major challenge across Europe, trade unions are fighting for the better, hours and other conditions that will help to retain staff and recruit more workers to these essential services. So far affiliates in 15 countries have been involved in protests, strikes and negotiations, with at least 16 new sector agreements delivering new pay and benefits for workers.

A new study of the impact of the pandemic in social care in eight countries reveals the problems faced by social care workers and the extent to which trade union action has helped to address issues around personal protective equipment (PPE), sick pay, working time and understaffing. There has been a shortage of PPE in all countries, but it was only in Sweden that a trade union had to take legal action for its members' right to use personal protective equipment. Increased overtime was a challenge in all countries but with split shifts being a particular problem in Sweden. The pandemic exposed

A new report by the Eurofound research organisation examines the long-term care sector and the challenges of low pay and difficult working conditions faced by workers, 80% of whom are women. The report indicates that there is good collective bargaining coverage in some countries, but this is often mainly in the public sector with low coverage in the private, for-profit sector and particularly low coverage of home care staff. Low pay, relative to other sectors, even impacts on the more skilled and senior staff and the widespread use of part-time work – double that of other sectors – also means

On 29 April EPSU signed a landmark agreement with the French-based Korian social care multinational to set up a European works council (EWC). The agreement comes two years after EPSU took the initiative to bring together affiliates that organise in the company to form a network with a view to establishing an EWC. EPSU believes this is an important step in improving information and consultation in the company and sets the standard for other multinationals in the fast-growing social care sector.

The latest issue of the Journal of International Trade Union Rights features a number of articles examining the extent to which public service workers find their rights restricted in relation to organising, collective bargaining or the right to take collective action. Nadja Salson of EPSU contributed an article highlighting two developments. First, is EPSU's legal action against the European Commission over its failure to put forward the information and consultation agreement in central government to the European Council for transposition into a directive and the second is the loophole in the

On 17 December the European trade unions and employers in central government administrations signed guidelines on tackling violence and harassment. This extends coverage to 8.9 million public employees and civil servants in addition to the millions of workers who are already covered by the guidelines adopted in 2010 in local and regional government, hospitals, education, commerce, and private security. While not legally binding, the guidelines provide basic yet fundamental guidance on how to put in place a policy and a procedure to prevent and deal with harassment and violent acts, in close

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has published two reports on collective bargaining and social dialogue. A working paper on social dialogue in public services was published to mark the 40th anniversary of ILO Convention 151 on labour relations in the public services. It covers three of the European social dialogue committees in which EPSU is involved along with examples of how social dialogue works in Italy, Denmark and the Czech and Slovak Republics. The ILO's report on extension of collective agreements provides evidence on the important role that this process can play in reducing

EPSU has launched a legal case against the European Commission and is now waiting for the first formal response. EPSU has taken the case because the Commission refused to submit to the European Council the information and consultation agreement signed in the Central Government Administrations social dialogue in December 2015. Despite signing the European Pillar of Social Rights and making positive statements about social dialogue, the Commission has failed to act to provide important rights to 9.8 million central government workers that are already enjoyed in the private sector. The complaint

EPSU affiliates around Europe have been developing collective bargaining policies, using legal action and pushing for legislative change to help them address the persistent problem of low pay in sectors dominated by women. In a report commissioned by EPSU, She works hard for the money, and in a presentation to EPSU's Quality Employment conference,Torsten Müller, senior researcher at the European Trade Union Institute, provides a number of examples from Finland, Sweden, Germany, the UK and other countries where public service trade unions have used collective bargaining to improve pay in health

Many prison workers across Europe are facing longstanding problems of understaffing, overcrowding and, as a result, significantly increased risks of violence. These were common to three country case studies carried out for EPSU by researchers at the HIVA research unit at Leuven University. In the UK, Italy and Greece the situation of prison workers had deteriorated in recent years with the prison service in Greece in particular having faced the deep cuts to funding and workers' pay imposed across the whole of the public sector. While Sweden presented a contrasting case study, the evidence was

EPSU has made considerable progress in bringing together trade union representatives from across Europe in two social care multinationals - Orpea and Korian. Company networks are being built in both organisations while steps have already been taken in Orpea towards setting up a European works council, with the first meeting of the Special Negotiating Body taking place on 25 April. Both companies are French-owned and have expanded rapidly in recent years with subsidiaries now operating in several European countries.

The European Commission has informed the social partners in central government administrations that it will not propose their information and consultation agreement to the European Council for implementation as a Directive. This is a major blow to the trade unions and employers in the sector who signed the agreement in December 2015 specifically with a view to having it implemented as a Directive and to fill a gap in existing information and consultation legislation at European level.

The European social partners in central government have worked together to produce the first guide to tackling psycho-social risks in the sector. Budget cuts, restructuring, intensification of work, digitalisation and violence at work have all contributed to increasing the pressures on central government workers. The guide proposes a range of measures and above all timely and effective information and consultation in order to address the problem. The guide, summary, background research and video are available in a range of languages.