Reacting to Letta’s much-anticipated report, the ETUC warns against attempts to apply ‘over-transposition’ arguments to employment directives. The generalised criticism of ‘gold-plating’, i.e. the ability of governments to go above and beyond in the transposition of EU directives, should not be applied to employment directives as it risks limiting the ability of national governments and social partners to lift labour standards at national level. 

Poverty, public services and jobs are the issues that citizens want to see prioritised during the European election campaign, the new Eurobarometer shows.  The European Parliament’s poll of 26,000 citizens asked: “Which of the following topics should be discussed as a matter of priority during the electoral campaign for the next European Parliament elections?” The top three responses were: 

The future of the European Union should be built on social progress – including quality jobs and fair pay and conditions – and not lower standards, it has been agreed today at the La Hulpe summit organised by the Belgian presidency.  The declaration on the Future of the European Pillar of Social Rights - signed by the ETUC, the EU institutions, the European Economic and Social Committee, business groups SME United and SGIEurope, and Social Platform – states: 

La Hulpe, 16 April 2024   High-Level Conference on the European Pillar of Social Rights Intervention of Esther Lynch, ETUC General Secretary La Hulpe : A project of hope  [Check against delivery]   Dear Presidents, Dear Deputy Prime Ministers,  Dear Commissioner, 

The results of the newly released EU poll on social Europe show why the European Parliament should reject proposed fiscal rules that would reimpose austerity.  The Eurobarometer released today shows nine in ten European citizens say a social Europe is of personal importance to them, with wages and healthcare featuring high among their priorities. 

Responding to the decision to maintain interest rates at record high levels, ETUC General Secretary Esther Lynch said: “High interest rates mean ordinary people are paying for an inflation crisis fueled by corporate profiteering. “The policy is designed to penalise workers whose purchasing power declined significantly during the recent inflation surge and which are only beginning to catch up now.

Responding to the vote on the migration and asylum pact, ETUC Confederal Secretary Giulio Romani said: “The people saying this deal will ‘increase solidarity’ can’t know the meaning of the word. “It will see more people fleeing wars, extreme poverty and, increasingly, climate disasters, being treated as prisoners.  “And it will inevitably lead to an increase in abuses of fundamental rights, illegal pushbacks, and returns to unsafe countries. 

The majority of EU member states will not be able to meet their targets for investment in schools, hospitals and housing under plans for new economic governance rules, a study for the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) has found.  

The employment committee of the European Parliament today voted in favour of upholding workers' rights and social dialogue in multinational companies.  The report by MEP Dennis Radtke (EPP) on amendments to the European Works Council (EWC) Directive was adopted by an overwhelming majority (28 in favour/ 7 against/ 8 abstentions).  This is good news, as the EWC Directive needs to be reviewed to ensure the effective exercise of workers’ rights of information and consultation on company decisions. 

Reacting to the European Council Conclusions, published today, on security and defence, the ETUC calls for a redoubling of efforts for peace. The ETUC is deeply concerned with the current state of peace and security in Europe and the world, along with the extraordinary growth in the number of wars and violent conflicts.

The living standards of European workers have still not recovered from the cost-of-living crisis, a major new trade union report on the state of the European economy has found. The real compensation of workers in the EU, which represents pay after inflation is taken into account, fell by 0.7% in 2023, according to Benchmarking Working Europe 2024, the European Trade Union Institute’s flagship annual report. 

Brussels, 20 March 2024 [Check against delivery]   There can be no doubt about the need for action. 

Young workers need certainty that the Directive on Traineeships, proposed today by the European Commission, will effectively ban unpaid internships.  The European Parliament has voted a number of times for unpaid traineeships to be banned – trade unions now call on Members of the European Parliament to ensure that measure is included in the final directive.

The increasingly rapid de-industrialisation of Europe is laid bare by new trade union research which finds almost a million manufacturing jobs have been lost over the last four years.   An analysis of Eurostat data by the European Trade Union Institute has found that the number of people employed in manufacturing has fallen by 853,000 since the third quarter of 2019. 

Today, many companies use legal loopholes, making human rights violations the norm rather than the exception in supply chains around the world. It leaves the victims of crimes committed by these companies – workers and communities – trapped in a legal maze seeking justice. Workers are raising their voices, demanding a role in securing supply chains. 

Today's vote by Member States in the Council unblocks the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, paving the way for a dramatic improvement in respect for the human rights of millions of workers in the supply chains of businesses operating in the EU.

Millions of people working through digital platforms are set to finally obtain minimum wages, sick pay and other employment protections following the adoption of the platform work directive today by EU member states.  Trade unions were successful in including the presumption of employment with the reversal of the burden of proof. Instead of individual workers going through lengthy court processes to prove they are a worker, it will now be up to the platform corporations to prove they are not employees. 

Trade unions are challenging European governments to start matching their words on International Women’s Day with action on gender equality. Politicians from across Europe will today post messages celebrating international women’s day despite many recently watering down the EU directive on combatting violence against women. In a letter to the ambassadors of all member states, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) remind them that “gender equality has to be fought every day of the year.”

The European Central Bank has chosen to maintain interest rates at their record high levels today, citing wage increases.  Real wages have fallen for two consecutive years while real profits have increased, so any objective assessment of inflation finds that it has been driven by profits not wages. The real compensation of workers in the EU, which represents pay after inflation is taken into account, fell by 0.7 per cent in 2023.

The political agreement reached last night at trilogue on banning forced labour products is an important step forward.