Central government

The Cgil, Cisl and Uil Pa public service federations have declared a one-day strike on 9 December covering public health, and local, regional and central government. New collective agreements are due to be negotiated across these sectors but the unions argue that the government has failed to guarantee funding to cover any negotiated improvements. They also say that there is no commitment from the government to ensure safety at work, to increase employment or to tackle precarious work. Fp-Cgil (IT)

Ver.di and other public service unions have negotiated what is seen as respectable deal in a challenging bargaining environment that delivers a 1.4% pay rise for all workers on 1 April 2021 with a further 1.8% increase in April 2022. The agreement runs until 21 December 2022. The pay increase in 2021 is backed with a 50 Euro a month minimum which means that the lowest paid workers will see pay increase by 2.59%. Meanwhile, nursing staff will get 70 Euros a month additional payment from March 2021, rising to 120 Euros in 2022. Other payments for health and care workers include an increase in

22 October saw public services union ver.di involved in two major negotiations. The third round of bargaining covering municipal and federal employees was underway with ver.di underlining the importance of a decent settlement in recognition of the work carried out by public service workers during the current pandemic. The union expects the employers to continue to stress the problems facing public finance and to push for a long-term deal with small pay increases. Ver.di mobilised through warning strikes and online action in the lead up to the negotiations. Meanwhile, negotiations covering

The OSZSP health union reports that it has secured a commitment from the government for a 10% pay increase for health and social care workers. However, in discussions with the health ministry the union had to intervene on the state budget to ensure that funding was available to hospitals to cover the pay increase. In contrast, the government is arguing that its changes to income tax rules will increase take-home pay for workers and so it is planning to freeze pay for other public service workers and is even using the change to argue for pay freezes in the private sector.

The public service federations Fp Cgil, Cisl Fp and Uil Pa are set to mobilise their members in central government in response to a government decree issued on 19 October which undermines the role of the trade unions in collective bargaining and in dealing with issues such as on smart working and innovation in public services. The unions argue that the decree fails to address the impact of years of underinvestment in central government in relation to technological and organisational innovation as well as training. It will mean a increased management discretion and a reduced role for trade

The FSC-CCOO and FeSP-UGT public service federations have criticised the government for failing to address major problems of recruitment and promotion in the state administration. They say that around 43000 jobs – nearly 20% of the total – have been cut over the last 10 years and the situation now poses a threat to service delivery including in some key COVID-19-related work. The unions want to see the appointment of 20000 employees, promotion for around 14000 and permanent status for around 5000 temporary workers. There has been a severe delay in appointing or promoting people who have been

The three main trade unions - CGSP/ACOD, ACV/CSC and SLFP/VSOA - organised a 48-hour national strike from 6am on 24 September in protest at proposals to relax the rules on prisoner visits. The unions are extremely concerned that the proposed changes come at a time of increasing infection and pose a serious threat to staff and inmates.

The nine state sector unions in the OFR/S,P,O bargaining council have set out their main priorities for the upcoming bargaining round. Underlining the need to maintain a skilled workforce in the public sector the unions want to see pay follow developments in the private sector. They are also calling for greater working time flexibility to suit employees rather than the needs of employers. With the increase in telework as a result of the pandemic, the unions are calling for a joint review of telework rules. They are also raising issues in relation to employment security and health and well

The FSC-CCOO and FeSP-UGT public service federations have signed a new agreement on telework covering 2.5 million public sector employees. The agreement includes basic principles that telework arrangements should be voluntary and reversible and subject to key provisions relating to health and safety, equality, transparency and objectivity. The agreement protects employee rights as well as guaranteeing services for citizens. Other important elements include a right to disconnect, data protection and the right to privacy. The unions have called for negotiations at various levels of government to

Service union ver.di has launched warning strikes across federal and local government to put pressure on the employers following the second round of bargaining. The union reports that the two-day meeting was a waste of time with no offer from the employers and no real appreciation or recognition of the work done by public sector employees. The employers have indicated that they will come up with an offer before the next round of negotiations which are due on 22-23 October. However, ver.di is not expecting much as on one key issue - equalisation of working time between Eastern and Western