Netherlands
Workers in the waste collection service in Leiden took strike action on 21 October in protest at plans to privatise the service. The workers are hoping that privatisation will be postponed and that the union will be able to negotiate changes and improvements to the service. Further strikes may follow if the municipality goes a head with the privatisation.
Read more at > Abvakabo (NL)
Refuse collection workers in the Grand Lyon region covering 58 local authorities have entered their third week of strike action in opposition to privatisation, to maintain existing services and for improved pay and conditions. Unions have criticised the Grand Lyon authority for adopting private sector methods in trying to beat the strike by using contract workers to collect rubbish. The unions involved are the CGT, FNAF/CFTC, FO, CFDT, FA/FPT, UNSA et UGICT/CGT. Read more at > CGT Service Publics (FR)
Public service unions GMB and UNISON have organised a fundraising event for refuse workers in Leeds in North East England. The workers have been on strike for six weeks in a dispute over pay cuts that could cost some of them up to £6,000 (€6,500) a year. The local authority is trying to impose the pay cuts as part of a strategy to prepare the cleansing services department for privatisation. Read more at > GMB (EN)
Unions representing workers in the Ministry of Justice, including FSC-CCOO and FeSP-UGT, are continuing their all-out strike action while the minister refuses to negotiate. The strike committee entered the ministry’s head office determined to demand that negotiations begin and remained there, waiting for a negotiator to arrive. But 24 hours later there had been no progress and the only steps taken by the Ministry was to try to restrict the movements of the committee and confined it to the meeting room with no access to food or drink. The all-out strike began on 30 May following two three-day
