Women from trade union backgrounds have moved into influential government positions in both Italy and Sweden. In Sweden, Eva Nordmark, ETUC Executive Committee member and head of white-collar union TCO, is the new Employment Minister, appointed under a government reshuffle by Social Democrat Prime Minister Stefan Löfven.

Progress towards social dialogue on social services took a step forward this summer with a meeting between European trade unions and employers in the sector. The European Public Service Union (EPSU) met with the Federation of Social Employers to discuss better working conditions offering greater dignity to the 10 million social service workers across Europe.

A new collective agreement will mean a cut in working hours for some 16,000 textile workers in eastern Germany, bringing them into line with their western counterparts. The deal, concluded with employers by German union IG Metall, marks an important milestone on the road to harmonisation of working conditions in the east and west of the country, 30 years after reunification.

Trade unions in Croatia have collected more than 600,000 signatures on a petition supporting their demand for a referendum on the age of retirement.

The social partners in the Netherlands, together with the Dutch Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, have agreed on a programme of 'Development Advice' for older workers.  The Development Advice is widely available and free of charge. Anyone over the age of 45 and working at least 12 hours a week – whether employed or self-employed – can register for personal career guidance enabling them to assess their situation in the labour market.  A career coach will then help them to make choices for the future. 

Part-time firefighters in Sweden have won big gains in pay and allowances. The Kommunal municipal workers' union has secured a collective agreement that recognises the importance of this group of workers and the massive challenges they have faced recently as a result of widespread forest fires.

Members of the Belgian ACV-CSC union’s platform for LGBTQI members, LGBT@Work, joined the Belgian Pride celebrations in May, with the slogan: ‘All for One’. ACV-CSC LGBT@Work unites workers and activists who aim to promote non-discrimination and improve conditions for homosexual, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people in the workplace. They should have the right to express their sexual identity and to receive fair and equal treatment, as well as the same career and promotion opportunities as other employees.

Trade union solidarity and skilled negotiating by the Lithuanian trade unions have helped raise the monthly minimum wage to €430, an increase on the €420 initially proposed by the Lithuanian government.

French care provider Korian has reached a deal with trade unions on setting up a European Works Council. It will be the first EWC in the sector of care for the elderly and people with disabilities. The groundbreaking agreement comes after months of negotiations and opens the way for further deals in this growing sector. Korian is a major player in social care with over 52,000 workers in six European countries.

Workers in the municipality of Dobrich in Bulgaria celebrated May Day 2019 in style, with a pay rise negotiated by local trade unions. The framework agreement between the municipality of Dobrich and CITUB Dobrich means an increase in the incomes of workers in specialist areas designated by the state and the local authority. 

Proposals for a new parental leave scheme in Ireland have received a guarded welcome from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions. "These are positive developments for working parents," said Equality Officer David Joyce. "It represents real progress even if it could have gone further. Congress will be studying the scheme to examine whether it is consistent with the proposed EU Work-Life Balance Directive. The social partners will have an important role to play in transposition and implementation and Congress looks forward to participating in those discussions.”

Social partners in Italy signed a joint ‘Call for Europe’ (Appello per l’Europa) in advance of the EU elections, calling for further integration and stronger social dialogue. The three Italian trade union federations, CGIL, CISL and UIL, joined with the employers’ organisation Confindustria to reconfirm the country’s commitment to the EU and set out a vision for the future. It called on Europeans to cast their vote in favour of democracy, sustainable economic growth and social justice.

The Union of Free Trade Unions of Montenegro (UFTUM) and the Union of Independent Trade Unions of Albania (BSPSH) have concluded a cooperation agreement for the next four years, pledging mutual respect and an exchange of knowledge and experience. Srdja Kekovic, the Secretary General of UFTUM – an existing ETUC affiliate – and Gezim Kalaja, President of BSPSH, which has requested affiliation, signed the deal in the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica.

The CCOO confederation in Spain has published a trade union information booklet celebrating the 100th anniversary of the International Labour Organization (ILO) in 2019. The publication, one of a number of initiatives to mark the ILO's centenary, was launched by the Secretary General of CCOO, Unai Sordo, in Madrid on 5 June at the Economic and Social Council of Spain.

Ground-breaking legislation to outlaw the “scourge” of zero-hour and low-hours contracts came into effect in Ireland on 1 March 2019, after a five-year campaign by the trade union movement. Patricia King, General Secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, described the legislation as “one of the most significant pieces of employment law in 20 years”.

After a three-year wait, public service branches of the ETUC’s Spanish affiliates CCOO and UGT have won a new deal on pay and conditions for 40,000 workers in central government administration. The previous Spanish government had refused to negotiate. The agreement brings an overall wage increase of 14% for the lowest paid employees, covering the three years 2018-2020.

Members of the VDSZ trade union working at the Hungarian plant of South Korean tyre manufacturer Hankook have secured an 18.5% wage rise – surpassing the union’s original claim.

Carers and migrant workers are among the groups benefitting from collective agreements secured by the Fagforbundet public services union in Norway. The union is working to ensure that pay for staff in municipal services, including childcare, fully respects their qualifications and experience, including care responsibilities in the family. This could mean up to six years’ extra service related pay and seniority: a salary boost of some NOK 40,000. 

Members of the Austrian trade union confederation ÖGB celebrated their successful efforts to save the national young workers’ council, the Jugendvertrauensrat,  from abolition by the Austrian government. The young trade unionists helped organise a campaign entitled JVRbleibt (‘the youth council stays’). Nearly 40.000 people signed the petition in support. As a result the government reversed its position and the Jugendvertrauensrat will remain in place.

The ETUC’s German affiliate the DGB has got together with Hungarian trade unions to approve a declaration to ensure quality work and fair mobility. The principal aim of the statement is to raise the minimum wage so as to prevent poverty in the EU.  No full-time salary should be below the national poverty line. Working people should not be expected merely to survive on their wages, they should be able to live in dignity. The signing ceremony was hosted by Friedrich Ebert Stiftung in Budapest, and attended by DGB board member Stefan Körzell.

The trade union federation representing workers in the finance industry across Europe has signed a historic agreement to ensure that bank workers do not suffer from the rapid expansion of digital technologies in the sector.

Social partners in North Macedonia have joined with the government in agreeing a  three-year national Decent Work Programme aimed at providing more and better jobs, local employment partnerships, upgrading workers’ skills and improving health and safety.

In the town of Brighton and Hove on the south coast of England, building workers on local council-controlled construction projects have better working conditions and protection thanks to a ‘Construction Charter’ launched by Unite the Union. The charter ensures that working conditions meet the highest standards. It sets out 11 requirements for contractors and their supply chains, including direct employment status, health and safety, skills development, fair recruitment and measures to support the UK construction industry.

Germany’s ver.di services union has achieved a significant pay increase for regional government workers, and in particular workers in health and social care, after three rounds of negotiations. The basic deal means increases of 3.2% from 1 January 2019 (minimum €100 a month) and 1 January 2020 (minimum €90). There will be a further increase of 1.4% (min €40) on 1 January 2021. Trainees will get two increases of €50 in 2019 and 2020 plus an extra day of paid leave.

With French and international trade union support, employees at Flormar, the Turkish subsidiary of cosmetics multinational Yves Rocher, have reached a deal covering union recognition and protection for 132 laid-off workers. An agreement between the Gebze branch and the national management of the chemicals and rubber trade union, Petrol-Is, and Flormar, provides pay severance, notice and special benefits equal to 16 months' wages to each of the laid-off workers.