Uzbekistan, Kosovo, Iceland

EPSU has published the second in a series of articles on working time reduction, focusing this time on Iceland. Ten years ago the country had some of the longest weekly working hours in Europe and then trade unions began to address the issue through a series of pilot projects and negotiations in both municipalities and central administration. Trade unions worked closely with management to ensure services were maintained and the results of the pilot projects showed that working time could be reduced without loss of pay with surveys showing increased well-being among workers. Many local and

On 24 October, the BSRB public sector federation was one of more than a dozen organisations supporting a day of action calling for urgent action to address gender inequality, the gender pay gap and to tackle gender-based and sexual violence. Actions ranged from strikes and demonstrations to the withdrawal of all forms of labour, paid and unpaid. Since the first women’s day of action in 1975, unions and other organisations in the country have organised major strikes and protests and there has been some reduction in gender inequality. However, there is still a long way to go with the gender pay

The FSSHK health workers’ union suspended strike action planned for 20 December to allow for talks with the health ministry and prime minister. The union has already taken action in its campaign to ensure the 2022 budget includes funding for higher pay for health workers. The union is aiming for a 50% pay increase. However, it has proved difficult to bring the government to the negotiating table and the union says that it has only suspended the action and it will set another date in January if talks with the government don’t deliver. The prime minister has attacked the leadership of both the

The FSSHK health union took strike action on 25 November as part of a long-running campaign to try to get the ministry of health and the government around the negotiating table. The union wants to ensure that health workers are properly rewarded for their work, particularly during the pandemic, and is calling for talks over the 2022 budget and funding to cover improvements in pay and conditions in the sector. The FSSHK has been trying for several months to get a response and organised protest action to put pressure on the government and ministry but had to step up to strike action when the

The FSSHK health workers’ trade union staged a protest outside the prime minister’s office on 8 November to highlight the situation facing workers in the sector. The union wants to ensure that the 2022 budget recognises the efforts and sacrifices made by health workers and the challenges they face in terms of pay and the rising cost of living.

Nearly two out of three public employees are satisfied with the shortening of the working week, according to a survey reported by the BSRB public services federation. The results show that satisfaction is much higher among state and local government employees than among employees in other sectors. A total of 64% of civil servants say they are very or rather satisfied with the cut, with about 17% saying they are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied and about 18% saying they are very or rather dissatisfied. The difference between sectors appears to relate to the different way in which the cuts in