Spain, Italy
Unions to launch dispute in Tax Agency
The FSC-CCOO and UGT-SP public service federations are to declare a collective dispute with the Tax Agency which will coincide with the start of the Agency’s campaign on filing income tax returns. The dispute will raise a number of issues related to professional career development, internal promotion, strengthening the mobility agreement, telework and negotiating a new collective agreement. The unions are also concerned about plans to increase the telephone service without specifying salaries or the need to increase recruitment. They will also raise concerns around productivity and about safe
Official figures reveal scale of attacks on health workers
The FP-CGIL public service federation reports that the latest official data show that there were 16000 incidents of aggression against health and social care personnel in 2023, affecting 18000 workers. The statistics were published in the 2023 report from the National Observatory on the Safety of Health and Social Care Professionals which was established in January 2022 and is made up of the Ministries of Health, Interior, Economy and Finance and Labour, other government agencies, trade unions and regional professional associations. Nurses were the most affected by incidents of aggression
Dispute in Ministry of Justice continues
The FSC-CCOO federation organised protest rallies on 20 and 21 March in its continuing dispute with the Ministry of Justice, marking almost a year since the union began a series of strike actions. The federation is seeking a salary increase for all staff in general and special bodies, negotiations on the Efficiency Law which has implications for workers’ pay and conditions, proper recognition of functions and career development. The FSC-CCOO says that the Ministry broke off negotiations on 7 March saying it would not negotiate a salary increase for all workers. The federation is also angry
National strike of housing workers over collective agreements
The three public service federations – FP-CGIL, CISL-FP, and UIL-FPL – report a successful national strike of workers employed by the Federcasa social housing organisation. The unions have been negotiating on the 2022-2024 collective agreement since last autumn and resorted to strike action to put pressure on the employers to improve their pay offer and ensure that there is an additional payment to cover the delay in negotiating the agreement. The action on 20 February included a sit-in in Rome and many regional demonstrations across the country, including in Trentino, Liguria, Lombardy
Unions want pay increase confirmed and austerity measures repealed
The UGT-SP trade union and public sector federations in the CCOO confederation are calling on the government to ensure payment of the 2% pay increase across the public sector as set out in the three-year agreement 2022-24. The agreement has so far delivered pay increases totalling 7% in 2022 and 2023 and there could be an additional 0.5% on top of the 2% in 2024 depending on economic developments. The unions also want confirmation that various measures introduced as part of an austerity package back in 2012 are finally rescinded. The unions want the government to immediately begin negotiations
National strike to hit ENEL energy company on 8 March
EPSU and PSI have sent solidarity greetings to the three union federations – Filctem-Cgil, Flaei- Cisl and Uiltec – in their dispute with the ENEL energy company. The three unions are planning national strike action on 8 March and began a month-long period of industrial action affecting overtime, travel and changes to working hours on 24 February. The unions are angry about the company’s unilateral plans to change working hours arrangements, to outsource operations on the electricity grid, and its refusal to renew the remote work agreement. The three federations argue that the measures will
Unions make progress on consolidating bargaining in private care
The Fp Cgil, Cisl Fp and Uil Fpl public service federations have brought two collective agreements in private social care together and are working on consolidation with a third. The unions have signed the agreement for the period 2020-22 covering the National Association for Public Assistance (ANPAS) and the National Confederation of the Misericordie d'Italia, secular and religious providers of health, social care and other services. The aim is to create a single sector agreement covering providers of social and health assistance, medical transport and emergency out-of-hospital care. The next
Unions welcome pay increase but call for urgent meeting on framework agreement
Public sector federations in the CCOO confederation and the UGT-SP federation have welcomed confirmation that a 0.5% pay increase (backdated to January 2023) will be implemented in line with the last three-year pay agreement. The 0.5% figure was linked to growth in the Spanish economy. They now also want action on the 2% promised for 2024 and an end to the limit on replacing employees who leave. In the meantime, the federations are calling for an urgent convening of the monitoring committee on the framework agreement that addresses important issues such as partial retirement, annual leave
Ministry of Justice negotiations begin with working groups
After lengthy strike action by Ministry of Justice staff through 2023, trade unions, including the FSC-CCOO and UGT-SP, are now sitting down with ministry officials to try to resolve some of the main areas of dispute. The FSC-CCOO was disappointed at an early stage when its proposals for the remit of two working groups were rejected. The federation wanted one to discuss a general pay increase and other issues and the working group on the efficiency law to discuss working conditions and not just job functions. The FSC-CCOO also raised a number of other issues it wants to see on the negotiating
Unions sign agreements in private healthcare and with social co-operatives
The FP-CGIL, CISL-FP and UIL-FPL public service federations called off strike action planned for 31 January after the ARIS private sector health employers’ organisation agreed to sign a bridging agreement as called for by the unions. This means that there is now a temporary agreement with both the ARIS and AIOP employer organisations that allows for negotiations to begin to create a single, sector agreement covering all employees of both organisations. The bridging agreement provides for additional remuneration for different categories of workers ranging from €40 to €318.50 for a 13-month
Housing workers set to strike in February
The FP-Cgil, Cisl-FP and Uil-Fpl public service federations have proclaimed a national strike for 20 February for the staff of public and social housing companies covered by the Federcasa collective agreement. The unions say that, in the current negotiations for a new agreement for 2022-2024, the employers have proved unwilling to recognize the need to ensure the full professional development of staff and to offer adequate increases to protect wages. The planned strike will be the latest stage in lengthy mobilisations and campaigning since autumn 2023 which have focused on the crucial service
Strike planned in non-profit care sector for 31 January
The Fp Cgil, Cisl Fp and Uil Fpl public service federations have declared a day of strike action and protests on 31 January in their continuing campaign to secure a bridging agreement with the ARIS non-profit health employers’ association. ARIS has rejected the proposal that aims to provide a basis for negotiations to start that would lead to a collective agreement that covers both the ARIS and AIOP private health employer organisations. The unions are determined to secure improvements to pay and conditions for workers who haven’t had an update to the collective agreement for 11 years. The aim
Unions agree deal covering local authority managers
The three public service federations – FP-CGIL, CISL-FP and UIL-FPL – have signed a draft agreement with the ARAN agency for public sector employers that covers over 13,000 managers and senior staff in local and health authorities. The agreement is the last in the public sector covering the 2019-2021 period and means the unions can now focus on the next round of bargaining. There are three main pay grades covered by the agreement and along with a basic increase of €135 a month there will be additional increases related to each occupational group ranging from €104 to €174. The unions are