Adopted at the ETUC Executive Committee 12 June 2014
The ETUC Executive Committee reiterates how important it is that the interests of workers are represented when considering the issue of standardisation.
It makes reference to the resolution adopted on 5 and 6 June 2013 and to the ETUC’s role in European standardisation within the framework of the new legislative context defined in Regulation No. 1025/2012.
Adopted at the ETUC Executive Committee on 11-12 March 2014
Undeclared work is a serious form of social dumping and it is high time that concrete action is taken at EU level in order to prevent undeclared work and to protect undeclared workers.
The EU needs better enforcement of existing labour laws and standards as well as a stronger role in promoting more, and better, cooperation and coordination between the different national administrations.
Adopted at the ETUC Executive Committee on 11-12 March 2014
Background
Work-based learning, which is generally associated with apprenticeships for young people and dual systems of vocational training, is part of the policies supporting the transition from school to the labour market. It is integrated into broader education and training policies linked to labour market issues. [1]
Adopted at the ETUC Executive Committee on 11-12 March 2014
Summary
The Executive committee endorses the Report “Towards a Legal Framework for Transnational Company Agreements”[1] as a solid basis to support trade union demands for clearer and more transparent rules for transnational negotiations with multinational companies
Key Messages
To ensure a full recovery, Europe needs structural investments, fair pay and decent working conditions for all workers. The ETUC therefore calls on the Spring European Council to adopt a new direction as, without a radical shift in policy, the European Semester 2014 will do nothing to secure a sustainable recovery.
Adopted at the Executive Committee 11-12 March 2014
Europe 2020 not yet fit for purpose
In the very beginning, the Europe 2020 strategy, like its predecessor the Lisbon Strategy, relied on instruments which were not efficient, in particular, the open method of coordination. Then economic governance structures were established to better coordinate economic policies, and Europe 2020 had to fit into this new governance architecture, which was not conceived to help it reach Europe 2020 (namely employment or social) objectives.
Resolution adopted by the ETUC Executive Committee at its meeting on 11-12 March 2014
On 29 September 2010, Spain’s main unions the CCOO and UGT (Comisiones Obreras and Unión General de Trabajadores) called for a general strike to express their opposition to the policies implemented by the national government regarding labour issues, which represented a sharp decline in the rights of workers.
The right to strike is a fundamental right enshrined in the Spanish Constitution, which must be protected especially when exercised.
Brussels, 03-04/12/2013
- The dramatic events in Lampedusa provoked a wave of indignation throughout Europe and worldwide. It is one of the recurrent tragedies involving migrants on the border of Europe, notably in the Mediterranean Sea.
- The Southern routes of migration will be fed by wars and persecutions and natural events hitting the population in Africa and in the Middle East. The political instability of such areas reduces margins of cooperation with origin/transit countries.
Adopted at the meeting of the Executive Committee on 3-4 December 2013
With the publication of REFIT (Regulatory Fitness and Performance: Results and Next Steps) on 2 October 2013, the Commission took yet another step in a process aimed at the deregulation of Europe, the dismantling of legislation protecting workers’ rights and the weakening of social dialogue.
Brussels, 22-23/10/2013
The President of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, declared the shutdown of ERT a threat to “freedom and pluralism in the media”. The public media as an independent voice is a pillar of western democratic systems and has the permanent role of monitoring and supervision of the other powers. Never before has such a case of the quasi elimination of the media happened in democratic systems. This case once again shows that economic democracy and democracy in the workplace in particular need to be strengthened.
Brussels, 22-23/10/2013
Key messages
• Europe’s major challenge is to transform what could be the end of a recession into a robust process of self-sustained growth, with mutually strengthening investment, demand and job creation adding to growth dynamics
• To achieve this, the strategy of austerity and structural deregulation needs major change
• Fiscal austerity must be relaxed further and both nominal as well as structural deficit targets must correspond to the state and intensity of the business cycle
