About: Collective bargaining

The EU needs to respect different labour market models

Swedish trade unions cannot support EU wage legislation, and the issue risks undermining support for the EU project, argues Torbjörn Johansson.

EU Council agrees negotiating position on minimum wage directive

Two weeks after the European Parliament agreed its negotiating position on the minimum wage directive, a large majority of national ministers also agreed on a common position, with the only dissent coming from Denmark and Hungary.

Living wages hang in the balance as MEPs try to derail Directive

The European Parliament is set to adopt a text that would be a huge step towards delivering a living wage to millions across the EU – but the directive’s future is now in question as a group of Nordic MEPs try to stop it in its tracks, writes Alva Finn.

Publishers eye collective bargaining as way to take on platforms

As efforts to level the playing field between publishers and platforms gather steam around the world, collective bargaining approaches are also attracting support.

Worker advocates call for more ‘democracy at work’ ahead of Porto Summit

Trade unions and other labour supporters are continuing their push for greater worker involvement in company decisions, now labelling this as an effort for “more democracy at work.” They want to see this topic play a larger role on the...

Germany to tighten rules on meat industry workers

After the COVID-19 pandemic shone a spotlight on working conditions in meat plants, Germany is moving to tighten rules in a bid to afford workers more job security, but this has been met with criticism by the meat industry.  EURACTIV Germany reports.

Greece: Lenders take unacceptable hard line on worker rights

In the current negotiations over a new loan package for Greece, collective bargaining and worker rights have been in the spotlight. But expert opinion in favour of these tools is being ignored by Greece’s lenders, warn Jan Willem Goudriaan and Richard Pond.

ILO: Middle class at risk

The erosion of the middle class is worrying, because it particularly hurts young people, thus leading to an intergenerational gap. But it is even more worrisome, as it does not seem to have been taken seriously enough so far, said ILO senior economist Daniel Vaughan-Whitehead.

How Greece hopes to make money

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras presented a 47-page list of reforms in the context of negotiations with Jean-Claude Juncker. The list contains many recommendations – especially those that have been rejected by donors.

Temp chief: Workers face ‘a la carte’ employment

The European labour market is being overhauled in a thorough 'individualist' revolution that is moving workers away from fixed-term contracts and towards collaboration and subordination, argues Denis Pennel.

Monks: Austerity ‘too much, too fast’

Eurozone governments panicked at the onset of the Greek crisis and now there is a real risk that austerity measures, hastily adopted, might prompt a double-dip recession, John Monks, secretary-general of the European Trade Union Confederation, told EURACTIV in an interview.

Pay tensions mount as economy edges towards crisis

Under the threat of an economic downturn, trade unions and employers adopted a harsher tone at their bi-annual meeting with the current and forthcoming Council presidencies.

ECB attacks on wage claims raise tension with trade unions

A series of attacks by European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet on collective bargaining agreements that adapt wages to increased costs of living have been strongly criticised by trade unions throughout the EU.