Trade unions, employers and the government have signed a major agreement which sets out a range of measures for the coming two years. These cover green and energy issues as well as plans to increase unemployment benefit and pensions. Health workers dealing with COVID-19 will see a 30% increase on pay for the period August-December this year, around 6000 employees will benefit. There is also additional funding for municipalities to ensure that the collective agreement covering childcare nurses is fully implemented. This will particularly affect workers in small towns guaranteeing that they receive the minimum rate. The tripartite agreement also sees moves towards ratification of ILO Convention 154 on promoting collective bargaining and initial steps to ratify Convention 151 on labour relations in public services. This could be an important development as currently civil servants don't have the right to collective bargaining.
Tripartite agreement includes measures on pay in health and care
More like this
Union organises actions on health and childcare
Along with two other organisations representing health professionals, the vpod/ssp public services union is organising a week of action from 26-31 October demanding better pay and conditions and more staff in healthcare. The action will highlight the long working hours and risks faced by health workers during the pandemic and the long-term need to revaluate jobs in the sector. A series of actions will take place during the week with a national protest planned for Berne on 31 October. Meanwhile the union was also active in a demonstration in Zürich on 26 September calling for better pay and
Unions want more protection for health and care staff
Public service unions Fórsa and SIPTU have called for urgent action to better protect healthcare and childcare staff against the COVID-19 virus. Fórsa says that figures show over 9000 health workers were infected at the beginning of last month and that many are being pushed back to work too quickly by local management in response to increased demand and shortages of staff. Meanwhile, SIPTU has been making a case for a change in a approach in the childcare sector where there is no requirement to wear masks or implement social distancing. The union wants a review of procedures, for staff to be
Unions raise serious concerns about childcare provision for health workers
Trade unions representing health workers - INMO, SIPTU and Forsa - have been highly critical of the government's failure to come up with an effective plan to provide childcare for nurses, midwives and other care workers. Unions report that many health workers are staying away from work or using annual leave or sick leave as they have no childcare provision. Those who can find childcare are often paying high costs and proposals and unions are saying that proposals that offer leave for partners of health workers fail to recognise the limitation of the measure. Unions are particularly