Gas, Staffing levels, Italy, Denmark

Public sector unions have welcomed the outcome of negotiations with the employers and government which have delivered a package of pay-related measures backed with DKK 6.8 billion (€910 million) of funding. A number of different groups of workers across the public sector will benefit, particularly those affected by major staff shortages. Around DKK 1.3 billion (€170 million) will go into health and elder care, for example. The package will have a wider impact than anticipated as, in addition to the higher pay for occupations like nurses, care workers, social educators and prison staff, a much

Following the strike action on 17 November, the Fp-Cgil, Uil-Pa and Uil-Fpl trade union federations were set to organise a national protest outside the Ministry of Economy and Finance on 7 December. The unions are calling on the government to change the budget law for 2024 to ensure funding for renewing collective agreements and providing protection for workers’ purchasing power. They also highlight the failure of the government to tackle staff shortages or make any preparation for the fact that around 700,000 workers are due to retire by the year 2030. Meanwhile, both Fp-Cgil and Uil-Fpl

Alongside action by the CGIL and UIL confederations, the CISL trade union confederation is planning a national protest in Rome on 25 November over the government’s budget for 2024 and its refusal to engage with the trade unions. Together with demands for increased funding for public services, CISL wants to see action on staffing and measures to reduce precarious work. It also wants the government to commit to negotiating new collective agreements in the public sector. The mobilisations by UIL and CGIL continue with regional stoppages planned for 24 and 27 November and 1 December.

A major survey of more than 4000 workers by the FOA trade union shows that 35% of employees in the health and care sector have experienced threats of violence in the past year. This compares to only 6% for the general population. Some 30% say that they have been subjected to physical violence. The union is worried that the real figures may be even higher as it believes many employees have come to accept that violence and threats are part of the job. The evidence indicates that the most vulnerable places of work are psychiatry, nursing homes and special and disability areas. FOA highlights the

The FP-CGIL, CISL-FP and UIL-PA trade union federations are coordinating a national protest of workers in the Ministry of Justice on 10 March in order to put pressure on the ministry to negotiate with the unions over a range of measures essential to improve services. The unions highlight the need to increase staffing through an emergency recruitment plan along with action on pay and conditions, career development and initiatives to reduce precarious work. The unions have been raising all these issues for months but have received no response or indication of a willingness to negotiate.

A documentary on Norwegian TV and a survey by the FOA trade union in Denmark expose similar problems facing workers in eldercare as they have too many clients, leaving those requiring care regularly seeing lots of different carers for short periods of time. Reacting to the documentary the Fagforbundet trade union highlighted the problem of so many care staff working part-time, chasing shifts to try to make ends meet and being part of a continuing turnover of staff so that there is little continuity for those needing care. In Denmark, the FOA argues that staff spend too little time with those

The FP-CGIL, UIL-PA and UIL-FPL public service federations are planning a week of action from 12-16 December with protests and strikes around the country in protest at the government’s budget for 2023. The unions argue that the budget fails to provide adequate funding across a range of services with nothing to address the cost-of-living crisis, to cover the renewal of collective agreements, to increase public employment, to end precarious contracts, to improve training and to ensure quality of services from childcare to health and social care and across local and national administration. The

The FP-CGIL, CISL-FP and UIL-FPL health and social care unions have joined with other unions in the sector to organise a major demonstration in Rome on 29 October. The protest calls on the new government to take urgent action to address the long-term underfunding of the sector and the crucial question of understaffing. The unions want to see the resources made available to fund the next three-year collective agreement and additional improvements to pay and conditions made through decentralised bargaining. They are calling for an emergency employment plan and measures to ensure that private

With a general election imminent the FOA trade union has welcomed a proposal from the Social Democratic Party (SDP) to set aside an extra DKR 3 billion (€400m) a year for better pay and working conditions in the public sector. The funds would be phased into the public collective bargaining from 2024 onwards and are aimed at helping to solve the recruitment challenges facing the sector over the coming years. According to SDP calculations, the proposal could mean a salary increase of around DKK 2,000 (€270) a month for 235,000 public sector employees if DKR 2.5 billion is spent on better pay.

Following their action in July, employees of the Ministry of Defence mobilised again on 28 September to voice their concerns over understaffing and the threat of privatisation. The public service federations – FP-CGIL, CISL-FP and UIL-PA – coordinated the action which called for an emergency recruitment plan and measures to address concerns about restructuring, changes to pay tables, implementation of the collective agreement, agile work (form of telework) and proper consultations with and participation of the trade unions.

The FP-CGIL, CISL-FP, UIL-FPL and UIL-PA public service federations are mobilising their members in protests in two sectors – health and social care and the justice ministry. The national health and social care protest on 29 October will be calling for increased funding, more jobs and better pay and conditions. The unions argue that it is all very well for the EU-backed national reform and resilience plans to support investment in new facilities, but the challenge will be to find the workers to staff them. Meanwhile, the federations have declared a state of agitation in the justice ministry as

Firefighters’ unions, including Fp-Cgil-Vvf and Fns-Cisl have called a national demonstration in Rome on 14 September with urgent demands on pay, staffing, equipment and safety. With services stretched to the limit to tackle the increasing number of forest fires, flood and other emergencies, the unions argue that the number of active firefighters needs to be increased from 33000 to 40000 and professional and technical staff from 2000 to 5000. They are also concerned about inadequate and out-of-date equipment which not only hampers their response to emergencies but exposes firefighters to

The FOA trade union has sent a wake-up call to politicians from all sides about the need to address pay in the welfare sector. The union brought together 1200 of its shop stewards from across the country in a two-day conference to discuss pay in health, social care and other services and to really gauge the feeling at the workplace. The message from the conference was a mounting concern that society does not recognise the value of welfare work. FOA warns of increasing frustration and discontent among workers if action is not taken. It is already extremely difficult to recruit workers to the

Members of the Fp-Cgil, Cisl-Fp and Uil-Pa public service federations have been mobilising across the Ministry of Culture in protests over staff shortages and other issues, including application of the new collective agreement, remote work regulations and health and safety. The unions want to see an extraordinary recruitment plan implemented and warn of national strike action in September if the Ministry doesn’t respond. Meanwhile, members of the three federations in the Ministry of Defence are also mobilising over staff shortages and the impact of privatisation along with concerns about

The FOA and DSR trade unions have both published official data revealing the reality of overwork, understaffing and low pay in the health and social care sectors. FOA quotes from the latest survey by the Danish Working Environment Authority covering 30,000 workers. This shows that 23% of social and health care assistants say that they have often or constantly felt stressed within the past two weeks. Of all the industry groups, 'Residential Institutions and Home Care' is the sector where the largest proportion of employees feel stressed. The union says that understaffing, a high rate of sick