Staffing levels, Low pay/minimum wages
Union aims for pay agreement across social services
The ver.di services union is arguing that a sector pay agreement is needed to cover workers involved in childcare, youth and family work and care for the disabled. It says that the problem faced by the sector is that many welfare-based and private providers fail to pay decent wages with some pay rates as much as a third less than those that apply in the public sector agreements. Ver.di is highly critical of low-paying employers who don't recognise that urgent action is needed to address the shortage of skilled staff, with an estimate that kindergartens alone will face a shortfall of 329000
ETUC highlights further evidence of need for pay rise
The ETUC quotes new research from the Eurofound agency showing that in 11 EU Member States over a half of people say that have difficulty making ends meet. This is further evidence of the important of the ETUC's pay rise campaign and undermines any complacency about the impact of the current economic recovery. The survey also reveals that households in seven countries say that they are no better off than they were in 2007 before the financial and economic crisis.
Museum workers take action over changes to contracts
Workers at museums and historical buildings in Greenwich in South East London took strike action on 1 January in protest at changes to their contracts imposed by management. The changes mean fewer breaks, removal of paid breaks and an extension of hours in which workers' shifts can fall. All these effectively undermine the 3% increase in the hourly rate negotiated by their trade union Prospect last year. The new terms and conditions also don't guarantee payment of the unofficial London living wage which is currently GBP 10.20 (EUR 11.50).
Minimum wage for childcare workers up by 3%
Private childcare workers saw a 3% increase in the sector minimum wage from 1 January. The increase was negotiated by the vida and GPA-djp service trade unions with the Federal Arbitration Office. The increase takes the lowest wage level above EUR 1500 for the first time, reaching EUR 1514. There is also a provision to ensure that special payments continue to be fully paid in cases of long-term sickness or accidents at work. The unions are pleased that this is a good deal for the 10000 workers in the sector, the vast majority of whom are women.
Culture union delivers petition on pay
The KKDSZ culture worker's union delivered a petition with 3000 signatures to the ministry of culture on 22nd January calling for immediate negotiations on pay. The petition was the initiative of employees of the Fine Art Museum and was taken up by KKDSZ. Some workers in the sector have not had a pay rise for over 10 years and 80% of qualified staff have to survive on only EUR 580 a month (gross).
Unions resume protests over pay and conditions of home care workers
25th January will see the first of another series of partial work stoppages by home care workers in the Basque region in protest at poor pay and working conditions. The actions follow similar protests at the end of last year coordinated by the UGT, USO, ELA and LAB trade union organisations. The unions say that companies are not respecting the collective agreement and make no guarantees on hourly payments when they bid for contracts. The unions are also protesting against excessive flexibility and use of temporary contracts and the fact that workers haven't had a pay increase for five years
Home care workers' campaign continues into third month
Home care workers in the Basque region of northern Spain are in the third month of their campaign to secure better pay and employment conditions. Their latest partial work stoppage took place on 25 January and further action is planned for 12 and 27 February to put pressure on city councils and the regional council to act on the low pay and precarious employment conditions that are common to the contracts run by private companies across the region. EPSU sent a solidarity message.
Union protests over low pay for local government workers
The STAL local government has organised a demonstration outside the local government ministry on 9 February in protest at the government's failure to increase pay rates for the lowest paid municipal workers. A combination of a freeze in pay progression and a freeze on pay scales since 2009 means that workers on the bottom two pay scales have seen their pay rates (EUR 450 and EUR 532.08) overtaken by the national minimum wage (EUR 580). Under government proposals those on the two lowest pay bands will be stuck on the minimum wage, while those who progress to the third pay level will only see
Local government employers offer funding to cover care staff shortages
At an early stage of the negotiations in local government the KL employers' organisation has said it will allocate around 500 million krone (EUR 67 million) to tackle major staffing shortages in health and social care. In December, KL and the FOA public services union issued a joint report which revealed that 73% of municipalities faced shortages of skilled staff, particularly in the field of eldercare. FOA gave a positive reaction to the news but underlined that they and other public sector unions still had key demands for tackling low pay and the gender pay gap.
Boost for lower paid in health and social care deal
After the sixth round of negotiations, the vida and GPA-djp service unions agreed a deal for 100000 workers in the private health and social care sector. There will be a 2.5% pay increase dated from 1 February but with a EUR 48 per month minimum increase. This will mean more than 3% for the lowest paid workers. There will also be specific provisions for care assistants, special care assistants and qualified nurses who will see additional increases ranging from EUR 10 to EUR 50 a month in both 2018 and 2019. Although the unions did not achieve a reduction in weekly working hours they said that
Survey reveals realities of workers' pay and working conditions
A survey commissioned by the DISK trade union confederation reveals the low pay and long working hours faced by many workers across Turkey. Some 54% of all workers say they are “struggling to make ends meet,” while 71% of workers without any social coverage say the same. In contrast, only 19% of trade union members say they are “struggling to make ends meet.” However, union density is only at 13%. Twenty-four percent of all workers say they do not take any annual leave, rising to 48% among uninsured workers.The study also revealed that 44% of workers believe their health and safety conditions
Unions plan protest to support key demands
The STAL local government trade union and other unions in the Frente Comum federation of public service unions are organising a national demonstration in Lisbon on 16 March. The protest is to underline the unions' main demands for a 4% pay increase with a minimum of EUR 60 a month. While the government has finally unfrozen career development after 13 years, some of the lowest paid workers hardly benefit at all, moving only from below to slightly above the minimum wage. The unions' demands also include action to reduce precarious employment and increased allowances to cover arduous and