2014 November epsucob@NEWS 19
Unions make breakthrough with agreements in social services
In the face of a very challenging environment, three unions - Sanitas, Columna and Publisind - have achieved a major victory in signing collective agreements covering workers in social services. The agreements cover a wide range of employment conditions, including wages, working time and holidays, job protection, continuous professional training as employers responsibility, consultation with the union in case of changes in the organization and much more. Pay increases are negotiated separately. Confederations recently agreed an minimum salary of 975 RON (€220) that applies to all workers in
Health unions mobilise for 24 November
Health unions in England are building up towards the second day of strike action on 24 November which will also be followed by a week of working to rule. This follows the actions taken in the week beginning 13 October and is in support of their claims for immediate payment of the 1% consolidated sum to everyone, as recommended by the NHS Pay Review Body; a Living Wage of £7.65 (€9.60) an hour for low paid staff; an above-inflation pay rise for 2015-16 and a commitment to future pay rises that will restore the value of NHS pay. EPSU affiliates UNISON, Unite, GMB and RCM will be joined by other
Home care workers campaign against threat of cuts
Around 3000 home care workers gathered in the Hague on 8 November to protest against the adoption of a new law on long-term care which would lead to cuts in public spending, closure of care centres and loss of jobs. The demonstrators handed in more than 159.000 signatures to protect care services and plan a further petition if the legislation is passed. Read more at > EPSU (EN) And at > FNV Abvakabo (NL)
Conference to discuss pay and conditions in social services
The results of the WICARE project on pay and conditions in social services will be discussed at a conference in Amsterdam on 18 November. A number of draft reports have been prepared covering specific countries as well as specific topics such as pay, working time, trade union representation and working conditions. Final reports will be published after the conference which is being coordinated by the AIAS research institute at the University of Amsterdam. [Read more on the WICARE project at > EPSU->http://www.epsu.org/r/682] [Draft reports are available for EPSU affiliates at > EPSU->http://www
Members vote on welfare and social services agreement
After 18 months of negotiations a new agreement covering the welfare and social services sector is being voted on by members. The CNV Publieke Zaak trade union is recommending acceptance, whereas the FNV Abvakabo trade union is not supporting the agreement. It argues that the provisions affecting older workers and pensions are inadequate and that the pay increases and lump sum payments are not good enough for a 27-month agreement. CNV Publieke Zaak believes the agreement offers workers more control over their employment conditions. The deal is backdated to 1 January 2014 and runs to 1 April
Confederations unite in protests over austerity
Over 120000 people joined the national demonstration in Brussels on 6 November in protest at the new government's austerity policies that include attacks on social security, pensions and the wage indexation system. This marks the beginning of a series of actions by the three trade union confederations that will include regional strikes and a national strike on 15 December. [Read more at > FGTB (FR)->http://www.fgtb.be/web/guest/news-fr/-/article/2816724/;jsessionid=HRA-VmOXwtdZPdbCBZEfQaU&p_l_id=10624] [And at > ABVV (NL)->http://www.fgtb.be/web/guest/news-nl/-/article/2812747/&p_l_id=10187]
Collective bargaining news from around Europe
The October collective bargaining newsletter from the ETUI trade union research institute includes over 70 articles covering developments in 35 countries. There are several news items relevant to the public services from Austria, Bulgaria, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Spain and the UK. Read more at > ETUI (EN)
Strike action on 27 November
Public and private sector trade union confederations, ADEDY and GSEE, have called a general strike for 27 November in protest at the continuing austerity measures being enforced by the government. They are demanding increases in wages and the repeal of the legislation that has undermined collective bargaining and employment rights. ADEDY is particularly concerned about further threats to layoff public sector workers and both confederations are protesting over cuts to the social security and health systems. Read more at > ADEDY (GR)
Pension agreement negotiated
SAK and STTK, two of the three trade union confederations, have agreed pensions reforms with the employers. It will come into effect in 2017 if approved by the government. The agreement was rejected by the Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland Akava. The unions believe the new system will protect the future pensions of the present younger generation and ensure a respectable retirement path for older employees.The minimum retirement age will be raised gradually from 63 to 65 for persons born after 1955. The system of accumulation of pensions will change. At
Wide support for national day of action
There was solid support for the national day of action on 13 November called by the CGTP-IN confederation. This saw trade unions in both the public and private sectors take strike action and organise other protests and events against austerity. Among the key messages were the defence of collective bargaining, tackling precarious employment, a wage rise for all and, for the public sector unions in particular, implementation of the hundreds of local agreements to maintain the 35-hour week. The EPSU Executive Committee earlier this month approved a resolution calling on the Portuguese government
Federations criticise failure to negotiate
The FSP-UGT public service federation has said it will not participate in negotiations with public sector employers unless they are proper negotiations that benefit workers. The union's announcement came after a meeting with the health ministry over the ebola virus which the ministry simply used to inform unions of actions on which it had already decided. Meanwhile the FSC-CCOO and other federations have complained about the failure to convene the CIVEA committee that monitors the implementation of the public sector agreement. [Read more at > FSP-UGT (ES)->http://www.fspugt.es/salud/803-ugt
Call for six weeks holiday for more workers
The GPA-djp services union is arguing that the right to six weeks' holiday should be extended to more workers. Currently the right tends to be limited to private sector workers with 25 years' service and public sector workers aged 43 and over. The union argues that more workers should have the right, particularly in sectors dominated by women such as health and social care. Increased holiday is important for the rest, recuperation and motivation of workers. [Read more at > GPA-djp (DE)->http://www.gpa-djp.at/cms/A03/A03_3.8.a/1342553079076/ueber-uns/presseservice/gpa-djp-fetik-6-urlaubswoche
Campaigning against rising inequality
The FOA public services union is running a campaign to alert the public to the worrying trend of increasing income inequality. The union quotes a recent analysis that finds that over the last 30 years the gap between the highest paid and the lowest - many of the health and social care workers represented by FOA - has doubled. On average the top income bracket now get five times more than the lowest paid, compared to 2.5 times in 1985. Read more at > FOA (DK)
Union welcomes talks on sector wage differences
Municipal workers' union Kommunal has welcomed the fact that industrial employers are willing to discuss the structure of wages in the economy and the fact that this contributes to the gender pay gap. While the employers argue that the economy needs a strong and competitive export sector, Kommunal points out that industry's competitiveness depends on an effective social infrastructure that provides education and care for the young and the elderly. Kommunal wants to challenge the idea of "women's jobs" and change a wage structure that allows those who look after people, like nurses, to be paid
Firefighters win back missed overtime pay
Following a check on their contracts by a representative of the municipal union Kommunal, firefighters in the central province of Jämtland have been paid around SEK 40000 (€1500) in missed overtime payments. The workers hadn't been paid the overtime for hours worked above 168 a month and the union negotiated a total payment of SEK 565000 (€61000) for the 14 firefighters on the basis of 10 years of non-payment. Read more at > SVT news website (SV)