Remunicipalisation, Precarious employment
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.
Report reveals worsening labour market trends
(June 2017) A new report from the CBS statistics office highlights three key trends in the labour market reflecting greater inequality and less security. Overall the percentage of workers on permanent contracts has fallen from 71% to 61% while the labour market is becoming more divided between low-paid, low-skilled jobs and high-paid work, with few jobs in the middle. The report also found more young people and those with basic education are stuck in low-paid jobs with little autonomy or security.
Bank union protests over temporary work and outsourcing
(June 2017) The IPSO trade union that organises staff at the European Central Bank (ECB) mobilised staff for a demonstration on 7 June in protest at the ECB's long-term use of temporary contracts for staff doing permanent work. IPSO has been pushing for some time now for the Bank to end this practice where some workers have been employed for over five years, in some cases over 10 years, on renewed contracts. In the latest action IPSO also raised objections to the ECB's plans to outsource some services, starting with IT. EPSU sent a message of support.
Federations mobilise over employment centres
(July 2017) The three public service federations - FP CGIL, CISL FP and UIL FPL - organised a joint mobilisation on 3rd July outside the offices of the Ministry of Labour to call for action over the future of employment centres across the country. The unions are calling for guarantees for the workers in these centres in terms of jobs and wages as well as proper investment in the provision of employment services to citizens. Around 8000 permanent staff and 2000 temporary workers are affected by the uncertainty facing the centres.
Strike in local government to defend contract workers
(July 2017) The POE-OTA local government workers' union, supported by the ADEDY public sector confederation, took strike action on 29 June in protest at a threat to 10000 jobs. The unions say that the Interior Ministry plans to cut 10000 contract workers' jobs as part of a package of cuts agreed in the latest negotiations with European lenders. The unions are calling for permanent jobs to be offered to all contract workers.
Unions express concern over government's working time initiative
The JHL public services union and the SAK confederation have raised concerns about the government's approach to working time and possible changes to working time legislation. A government working group has come up with proposals that would allow for more local flexibility on working time while failing to put forward any concrete plans to regulate zero-hours contracts which currently affect 80000 workers in Finland. The unions argue that the proposals are more about flexibiity for employers than workers and that all workers should have a guaranteed minimum number of hours in their contracts.
Latest employment analysis from the European Commission
The European Commission has published its annual review of Employment and Social Developments which has a focus on intergenerational issues. The review notes the slow decline in unemployment but underlines that there remain major problems in some countries around youth unemployment while young workers in employment are more likely to face precarious employment conditions. At the other end of the age spectrum the Commission continues to focus on trends to higher effective retirement ages and the need, as it sees it, to increase retirement ages.
Unions criticise working time law proposals
The government is going ahead with proposals for new working time legislation despite widespread criticism from the trade unions and even doubts expressed by employer organisations. The government wants to allow more flexibility in working time, including longer night and shift work and more local agreements on working time. The unions are worried that this is all about more worker flexibility and are concerned about the lack of provisions to ensure workers are protected. The unions also point out that this is a missed opportunity to tackle the spread of precarious work.
Union report highlights gender pay and jobs gap in health
A new report from the health federation of the CCOO confederation covering the period 2012-2016 confirms the union's concerns over a widening gender pay and employment gap in the health sector. The report finds that women tend to have more precarious contracts with many on temporary contracts while they make up the vast majority of part-time workers and both of these contribute to the persistent gender pay gap. The union wants to see equality plans produced in any health institutions that don't yet have them and existing plans updated. Along with the CCOO, the UGT trade union has called on the
ETUC wants action on social dumping
Following a meeting with the French president over the summer, ETUC general secretary Luca Visentini is to meet French labour minister Muriel Pénicaud to discuss possible revisions to the Posted Workers Directive. This is an important piece of legislation that needs revision to ensure it is more effective in protecting the pay and conditions of workers who are on temporary assignments in other EU countries. The ETUC wants to see a guarantee of same salary for the same work in the same place and full entitlement of posted workers to all pay and conditions in collective agreements. Along with
Overseas development staff take strike action
Workers employed in the Agency for International Co-operation for Development (AECID) took strike action on 8 September in protest over pay and conditions. Around 40% of staff have either left or are thinking of leaving the service because of deteriorating conditions pay frozen since 2009 and eroded by inflation and currency fluctuations. This has left some workers as much as 60% worse off in real terms. Unlike workers in other overseas departments AECID employees don't get any protection against local changes in the cost of living and this is the key demand of the strike.
Call for less flexibility and more permanent contracts for childcare workers
In the run-up to negotiating a new collective agreement covering 80000 workers in the childcare sector, the FNV trade union has published the results of a survey that reveal excessive flexibility in working hours and too many fixed-term contracts as major issues for childcare workers. The union argues that many workers have so few set hours that they can be called on at short notice to work additional hours, creating uncertainty and stress. With the increasing demand for workers in the sector the FNV argues that these issues need to be addressed if more qualified workers are to be recruited.