Germany - New collective agreement for railway sector Rail operator Deutsche Bahn (DB) and the GDL train drivers’ union have announced the signing of a new collective agreement, marking the end of a dispute that gave rise to repeated strike action. The 32-month agreement provides for a 3.3% pay rise... Find out more

On Tuesday, 28 September 2021, the French National Assembly ratified a government decree on representation modalities for platform workers. As of 2022, drivers and couriers working for platforms will be able to hold trade union elections – allowing them to better negotiate working conditions and in... Find out more

In a resolution adopted on 27 September 2021, the European Parliament’s Culture and Education Committee is calling for the establishment of common minimum standards on working conditions for artists and cultural workers. Workers of the arts industry are especially vulnerable to economic shocks, such... Find out more

On 23 September, the trade union-related research institutes (TURI) network held its 13th annual conference in Brussels. Although the pandemic still prevented most of its members from travelling and had to join online, with 27 represented TURI members, the turnout exceeded our expectations. It... Find out more

The Guardian has uncovered new evidence of a two-tier employment system in the meat industry with migrant workers subjected to sub-standard pay and conditions. The investigation shows that meat companies across Europe have been hiring thousands of migrant workers through subcontractors, agencies and... Find out more

Over half (57%) of Finnish teachers have considered changing sectors during the Covid-19 pandemic, says a report published by The Trade Union of Education (OAJ). The most common reasons for considering a change of sector are increased workload and low wages. The highest numbers of workers... Find out more

ETUI Education have recently developed four learning pathways, helping EWCs and SE WCs in designing their own long – term, multiannual training strategy. All you need is to follow the topics step-by-step. To cope with participants’ diverse learning patterns, the EWC pathways draw on the Jungian... Find out more

In her recent State of the Union address, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen mentioned a forthcoming proposal to ban the sale of products made by forced labour in the EU single market. Although no specific countries were mentioned, this ambition regarding human rights may concern the Chinese... Find out more

On 11 September, a large number of nurses, doctors and paramedics rallied in central Warsaw to demand higher wages and an improvement of their working conditions. As the fourth coronavirus wave gathers pace in Poland, protesters criticized the government for putting the safety of patients at risk by... Find out more

Germany - Pay raise of 5% in fine ceramics industry The union IG BCE and employers in the fine ceramics industry in west Germany agreed on a collective agreement. The 17,000 employees in the industry will receive a pay rise that adds up to a total of 5.05% through several pay steps, one-off payments... Find out more