U.K.
Public services union UNISON has called on local government employers to withdraw their demand for a pay freeze. The union argues that women will be most affected by a freeze as three out of four local government workers are women and two-thirds of them earn less £18,000 (€20,000) a year.
Read more at > UNISON (EN)
Unions are concerned about drastic economic measures that could include abolition of Employment Rights Orders. These provide minimum pay rates and employment conditions in a number of sectors. They are currently under review but if they are abolished it could mean, for example, cleaners seeing their minimum hourly rate cut from €9.50 to €7.65 which is the new, lower rate of the legal minimum wage. The SIPTU general union organized a petition and a delegation of members delivered the petition to the review. [Read more at > SIPTU (EN)->http://www.siptu.ie/PressRoom/NewsReleases/2011/Name,12141
A new analysis of statistics by Eurostat finds that 17% of full-time workers are low-paid – that means they are paid less than two-thirds of national median earnings. The data comes from the 2006 structure of earnings survey that excludes public administration. However, the statistics do cover the energy sector, which has the lowest proportion of low-paid workers, and the health sector where nearly 15% of full-time employers are low-paid. The report also reveals that 23.1% of women workers were low-paid compared to only 13.5% of men. [Read more at > Eurostat (EN)->http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa
The UNISON trade union has secured upgrading and back pay for 60 healthcare assistants employed in accident and emergency services at the Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust in North East England. This is part of the union’s national campaign to secure the appropriate grading for workers on band two of the national pay scale, but who have been undertaking clinical duties falling under band three. In this case the workers are set to receive around £3,000 (€3.500 in back pay). Managers at the Trust have also agreed to enter negotiations with UNISON in the new year aimed at re
