The initiatives for due diligence in supply chains are seeing growing support for their potential to create a level playing field, but European worker representatives say the benefits of this legislation would not be limited to the workers at the start of the value chain.
Creating responsible global supply chains with fair wages and working conditions is a key theme for Germany’s labour ministry (BMAS) during the country’s EU Council Presidency. On Tuesday (6 October), Labour Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD) made the case for a national and eventually European framework.
Already precarious in many regions of Europe, youth unemployment has spiked dramatically with the onset of COVID-19, sparking fears of another lost generation. At a recent StartNet Conference, policymakers, practitioners, and other stakeholders called for greater cooperation on facilitating young people’s transition to work.
While impacting all parts of the economy, COVID-19 has hit young people particularly hard. Nicolas Schmit, the Commissioner for jobs and social rights, spoke with EURACTIV about the EU executive's efforts to address these challenges and avert the prospect of another 'lost generation.'
The recent discovery of right-wing police chat groups has led many to ask how these tendencies in the police force can be counteracted. Oliver von Dobrowolski, head of the PolizeiGrün, discussed potential ideas for reform.
Twenty-nine German police officers have been suspended after they were found to have taken part in a series of chat groups filled with neo-Nazi and racist messages. But this is not the first time that authorities have discovered right-wing extremism in the police. EURACTIV Germany reports.
International perceptions of the US has sunk to new record lows, according to a new poll from Pew Research covering 13 countries, which highlighted a lack of trust in President Donald Trump's decision-making on foreign policy, as well as the country's inadequate coronavirus response.
Some 73% of German workers are happy with their company’s handling of the coronavirus, according to a recent survey. A majority also reported that their employers had created new opportunities to work from home. For many German companies, works councils played an important role in negotiating and implementing these changes.
Growing concerns around systemic racism have led some to reconsider the conduct of Germany’s police force and demand a study of racial profiling in policing. With more than 67,000 signatures, the petition calling for such a study must be debated in the Bundestag’s Petition Committee.
If EU leaders agree on the EU's seven-year budget and the recovery fund on Friday (17 July), this could facilitate the transition to a more modern and greener Europe. But labour representatives also want to ensure that workers have a say in the entire policymaking process.
As European football leagues began to resume play, the NGO Sport and Sustainability International (SandSI) rolled out a new initiative to get more clubs thinking about their carbon footprint. EURACTIV Germany reports.
The pandemic may be quickly reshaping views of geopolitics, according to new polling data. More people in France, Germany and the US view China as the most influential world power, as US hegemony wanes. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Solidarity and sovereignty is the name of the game for the German presidency, according to Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD). In a speech on Monday, he emphasised the need for greater EU independence from the current geopolitical power struggle between the US and China.
A new poll conducted in nine member states has revealed both widespread public disapproval of the EU’s coronavirus response and agreement on the need for greater European cooperation. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Germany, Portugal and Slovenia presented their joint EU presidency programme for the next 18 months on Tuesday (16 June), seeking to focus primarily on social recovery in the wake of the pandemic. Despite expectations, the 31 pages are otherwise filled with little substance. EURACTIV Germany reports.
As Germany prepares its latest plans to promote the objectives of UN Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, a group of 17 German NGOs have weighed in on changes they want to see. EURACTIV Germany reports.
The ongoing Black Lives Matter protests have generated a reckoning with systemic racism and police brutality in the United States and in Europe, perhaps like never before. In addition to demanding wide-reaching reforms, many have started to take the time...
Germany's defence minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (CDU) insisted on Tuesday (9 June) that the government cannot speculate on the reported withdrawal of US troops from the country, as it has so far only seen the news report and has not been officially notified.
The story is pretty much known: George Floyd was murdered 10 days ago in Minneapolis when a police officer pinned him to the ground with his knee on his neck for nearly nine minutes with the help of three other...
The outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic has forced Germany to radically revise the priorities for its EU Council Presidency in the second half of the year. One thing is clear: the biggest EU country takes the helm in the midst of an unprecedented crisis, at a crucial time for the bloc's recovery efforts. EURACTIV Germany reports.
At the weekend, the leader of Thuringia announced plans to end coronavirus restrictions in the eastern German state and replace them with local measures. Saxony voiced its support for the idea, while other states quickly condemned the move, possibly heralding the end the country's relatively harmonious federal coronavirus cooperation. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Negative feelings towards the United States in Germany are growing quickly in the pandemic era, according to a new poll, which also indicated a shift in public opinion towards Beijing.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron announced their joint proposal for a €500 billion European recovery programme following a virtual conference on Monday (18 May). The initiative seeks to bring Europe out of the crisis “united and in solidarity,” and prepare the EU for future challenges. EURACTIV Germany reports.
In an op-ed published this morning (14 May) in the German newspaper Die Welt, US ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell had strong words for the country’s leadership regarding its NATO commitments. EURACTIV Germany reports.
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