Union Rights, Digitalisation, Russia

The International Trade Union Confederation, along with the KTR and FNPR national confederations, has denounced the decision of a St Petersburg court to dissolve the Interregional Trade Union Workers’ Association (ITUWA) on the grounds that it engaged in political activities.The ITUWA had supported truck drivers protesting against tax increases, and criticised the government’s socio-economic policies on its website.The ITUC said that this is a clear violation of freedom of association, guaranteed under ILO Convention 87, which Russia has ratified. The Confederation called on the Russian

A new law covering telework introduces important new rules for those involved in remote or home work as well as including a role for trade unions in ensuring workers’ rights. The protections cover dismissals, employer provision of equipment or requirement on the employer to compensate workers for using their equipment and clear rules to ensure that all worker consultations with the employer are during normal working time.

After the surge in remote working as a result of the pandemic, trade unions in Ireland, Russia and Spain have welcomed new initiatives, including legislation and collective agreements, that regulate telework. Research by the Eurofound research agency also looks into the negative and positive implications of telework for workers’ autonomy and work-life balance raising again the challenges to ensure that workers have control over their working time and underlining the importance of current discussions at European level on the right to disconnect.