Unions take industrial action in private social care

Finland

Nursing and care unions Tehy and SuPer, along with ERTO, are running a campaign of industrial action to put pressure on private sector employers in the social care sector to deliver an improved pay offer. The unions have imposed bans on overtime and shift changes as well as organising strike action with a key aim to reduce the gap between private and public sector pay levels. Tehy and SuPer say that workers in elderly, child and disability care are on pay levels €150-€400 a month less than their public sector counterparts. They say that in the current negotiations the employers’ pay offer fails to meet an existing commitment to close the gap. Meanwhile, the JHL trade union is organising industrial action among personal assistants who provide services to the disabled. The union says that pay and conditions for the 20000 workers falls well below the average for the health and social care sectors.

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Apr. 05, 2017

Unions take strike action in private social care

Italy

(April 2017) Unions from the three confederations came together on 27 March to organise strike action in support of their claims for around 20000 workers in private residential homes for the elderly. The four unions involved (Fp Cgil, Fisascat Cisl, Uiltucs Uil and Uil Fpl) have rejected proposals from the Anaste employers' organisation that involve an increase in working time and a small pay increase after several years of pay increases. The unions have a raft of proposals to improve the pay and working conditions in the sector underlining the need for quality work to ensure quality services

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Jan. 25, 2018

Social workers take industrial action

Malta

Social workers organised by the UHM Voice of the Workers trade union have been taking industrial action in support of negotiations for a new collective agreement. The action consists of a range of measures that affect non-emergency work across the service but it maybe stepped up if there is no progress in the negotiations. With many staff leaving the service, the union is looking for a deal to increase pay but also to provide continuing professional development.

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Nov. 20, 2020

Social care workers take strike action

Ireland

Social care workers in Kerry and Cork have voted for industrial action in what is set to be a national campaign of strikes across what are called Section 39 organisations. These are non-government, publicly funded bodies that provide health and social services. In 2018 there was an agreement that employees in these organisations would, in line with the public sector, get pay rises to compensate for the cuts imposed during austerity. They are still waiting for this pay restoration and as many as 250 organisations across the country could be hit by strike action over the coming weeks. SIPTU

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