Remunicipalisation, Early Childhood Education and Care
Bringing services back in-house
EPSU has consistently argued in favour of direct provision of public services to guarantee the quality of services and the quality of employment for workers delivering those services. Under the heading of remunicipalisation EPSU supports and promotes any initiatives to bring services back in-house where they have been privatised along with moves to have new services run by municipalities and other public authorities. EPSU is part of a network, coordinated by the Transnational Institute that has published research highlighting recent trends in remunicipalisation and insourcing.
Union calls for living wage for all early years educators
The SIPTU services union has called on the government to commit to funding early years education in order to ensure a living wage for all childcare workers. The union says that, on average, early years educators are paid EUR 1.12 less than the living wage of EUR 12.30 an hour. SIPTU wants to see the living wage established as the minimum rate for all childcare workers as an important step in recognising the value of the profession and to begin to address turnover and staff shortages.
More pay, holidays and allowances for emergency workers
The vida and GPA-djp private service trade unions have negotiated a new agreement covering around 600 medical and health emergency staff. Workers in the Vienna region will get a 3.2% increase backdated to 1 February while increases will be set according to the appropriate arrangements in other regions and backdated to 1 January. After five years' service all workers will get an additional day of paid holidays. There is also an increase in the cleaning allowance and a child allowance of at least EUR 15 for each child from 2020.
Public investment in the social services workforce to deliver inclusive growth - EPSU at the 2019 Annual Convention for Inclusive Growth
EPSU speaks at the 2019 Annual Convention for Inclusive Growth Public and advocates for social dialogue in the field of social services and public investment in the social services workforce in order to deliver inclusive growth.
Social care workers call on strengthening the workforce perspective in the transition from institutional to community-based care
This article summarises the main topics addressed at the meeting of the EPSU Working Group Social Services on 26 February, with one focus on the transition from institutional care to community-based care and how to make this transition also work for the social care and health workforce.
School staff go for all-out strike
Teachers, childcare workers and school administrative and other staff began an all-out strike on 8 April following three weeks of negotiations with the government over pay. The negotiations also came after a three-year campaign of demonstrations and protests over low pay in the sector affecting both teachers and other school staff. With the government refusing to come up with a decent pay offer, support for strike action was very high, registering 80%-90% in some areas. The action comes at a time when other groups of public service workers are either taking strike action or pushing for higher
Unions call workplace meetings as employer rejects bargaining demands
The vida and GPA-djp private service unions have called for workplace meetings to take place in all Red Cross establishments on 29 March. This is a reaction to the employers' decision to call off the next bargaining round on 22 March and delay negotiations to mid-April. The employer has so far rejected the main demands from the union for unified, national collective provisions to ensure a five-day week for all, better shift arrangements, additional payments for night and Sunday work and more holidays. The unions are also concerned that in some regions employees don't get paid breaks or
Large pay rises for regional government workers
After three days of negotiations in the third round of bargaining, services union ver.di emerged with a significant pay increase for regional government workers and in particular workers in health and social care. The basic deal means increases of 3.2% from 1 January 2019 (minimum EUR 100 a month) and again on 1 January 2020 (minimum EUR 90). There will be a further increase of 1.4% (min EUR 40) on 1 January 2021. Trainees will get two increases of EUR 50 in 2019 and 2020 plus an extra day of paid leave. Minimum pay rates in the 15 pay groups will also increase which will mean new starters
How remunicipalisation of water services in Rostock delivered lower prices and better collective agreement
It took years of sustained effort. In the end trade unions, city councillors and water activists convinced the German city council of Rostock its water services are better off being run public.
Better pay and working time in private health and care
Services unions vida and GPA-djp are pleased with the pay and working time package they have negotiated in the private health and care sector that covers 100000 workers. After five bargaining rounds, the employers agreed to a 3.2% pay increase and a series of measures on working time. These include an extra day of holiday after two years' service, additional payments for covering shifts, part-time work for older workers, recognising that time taken to change clothes at work is working time, new rules on split shifts and more certainty with planning rotas. There will also be an extra EUR 100 a
Childcare workers get 3% pay increase
Around 10000 childcare workers in private institutions will see their pay increase by at least 3% this month as new regulations introduced by the labour ministry are implemented. Those on lower pay rates will get a 3.3% increase with a minimum of EUR 50. The pay rises are welcomed by the vida and GPA-djp trade unions that see these as a significant improvement for the women-dominated sector and as a contribution to tackle pay inequality. There will also be new rules to allow appropriate experience in similar work, including time worked in other countries, to be taken into account in career
Commission aims for more resilient and inclusive economy
Access to quality health, care and education and fairer and better tax, benefit and social protection systems are among some of the positive elements in the European Commission’s 2019 Annual Growth Survey (AGS) that was published on 21 November.
Unions launch public service pay campaign
The KKDSz culture workers' union and BDDSz childcare workers' union have been instrumental in getting the SZEF public sector confederation to launch a campaign on public service pay. The confederation is highlighting low pay and understaffing across the public services and the need for negotiations on long-term pay development in the public sector. It calls for action on corruption and the need for a redistribution of government spending to workers to ensure a fully staffed and professional public service delivering quality services.