People go to work to make a living – to provide for themselves, their family and their loved ones. Every working day across the European Union twelve working people do not come home from work - because they have died at work. Far from earning a living, work has killed them, and their families suffer emotionally, financially and in many other ways.

ETUC calls for fair conditions for self-employed and employees

The European Social Partners have succesfully carried out a project on the impact of the shift to circular economy on the world of work. The objective of the project was to analyse the impact of the transition to the circular economy on employment, changing jobs and tasks, training needs and skills, working conditions (such as organisation of work and health and safety aspects) and competitiveness. Find here the results of the project.

Social partner recommendations on skills, innovation, provision of and access to training Key messages 1. Employee training is mainly the responsibility of social partners. When organising employee training, national social partners need to take into account the realities of the labour markets and the needs of workers, including changes of tasks and jobs, innovation, mobility and transitions into and between jobs.

Question 1: The EU addresses sustainability challenges with cross-border implications in dedicated multilateral fora (e.g. on climate change and biological diversity) and via its autonomous measures (including legislative ones). Against this background, what should be the contribution of the EU trade policy to promote the transition to a greener, fairer and more sustainable economy? How should the implementation and enforcement of TSD chapters in FTAs complement and support the EU’s multilateral and autonomous initiatives?

For this year’s World Day of Decent Work, ETUC has decided to focus its messages on workers in platform companies, calling on the Commission to make platform companies respect the rules and deliver decent work for workers. Have a look to our leaflet!

Across the EU, young people are continuing to face a number of significant challenges to enter and get a stable position in the labour market. They do not easily obtain good quality jobs with decent wages and are still faced with significant exclusion from regular employment, good-quality education, training opportunities as well as adequate inclusion and coverage in the national social protection systems. Young women and migrants are particularly affected.  This results in significant challenges for young people to secure a stable foothold in good quality employment.

Following different projects with partners such us ETUI and ITC-ILO, and building on contributions from member organisations and individuals across Europe, ETUC Youth Committee in cooperation with FES presents a guide with recommendations on how to engage young people in the work of trade unions.  The guide explores existing good practices and new ways how to stop the trade union membership decline which is an existing threat in 27 out of 31 analysed countries. 

  COORDINATION OF TRADE UNION ORGANISATIONS OF THE “CONO SUR”(CCSCS) EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION (ETUC) JOINT STATEMENT ON THE BI-REGIONAL ASSOCIATION AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND MERCOSUR Summary of the Joint Statement The ETUC and the CCSCS reject the Agreement in its current state due to the fact that:

JOINT APPEAL ON THE INCLUSION OF A HUMAN RIGHTS CLAUSE IN THE EU-CHINA COMPREHENSIVE AGREEMENT ON INVESTMENT To the attention of: Commissioner for Trade, Mr. Valdis Dombrovskis President of the European Council, Mr. Charles Michel President of the European Commission, Mrs. Ursula von der Leyen President of the European Parliament, Mr. David Sassoli High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Mr. Josep Borrell Members of the European Parliament

A People’s Recovery Everybody on board for a fairer, greener & digital future! ETUC acknowledges the efforts made to create a €750 billion European Union recovery plan on top of the EU’s long-term budget (ie MFF). Although not enough it represents a much better response to the COVID crisis than the EU’s austerity-driven response to the 2008 financial crisis. With 45 million workers at risk of unemployment the stakes are very high.

Joint statement of the European and Ukrainian trade unions on the occasion of the EU-Ukraine Summit, 6 October 2020.

This guide has several objectives: first of all, it provides a clear definition of the concept of adaptation to climate change. Second, it aims to give the reader a clear idea of how climate change consequences will affect the different European regions and sectors. Third, it aims to explain what effects climate change will have on health and safety of workers. Finally, it details a set of recommendations and looks at existing practices to allow trade unions to take action on adaptation at the various levels.

Freedom, democracy and social justice are core values of the European Union. Democracy is important; not only on the political but also on the economic level. More Democracy at Work is part of a broader approach for a more Social Europe which is urgently needed. Workers represent an integral part of companies and the public sector, offering their time, energy and skills on a daily basis. Their voice and influence are however limited and are in fact shrinking Have a look to our video