European Court of Justice: Five member states fail to implement consultation Directive

In a series of rulings issued between March and September 2007, the European Court of Justice found that Belgium, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain had failed to implement the 2002 EU Directive on the information and consultation of workers.

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International: ArcelorMittal and unions agree global health and safety programme

In September 2007, ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer, agreed an innovative global approach to improving health and safety with trade unions at a conference organised by the International Metalworkers' Federation.

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France: Government sets out reform agenda

Following the summer break, France’s centre-right government has outlined its plans for major employment and social reforms over the remainder of 2007 and 2008. Increasing employment, extending working time, promoting “flexicurity” and making it easier to terminate employment relationships are among the main objectives.

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Ireland: Four out of 10 multinationals do not recognise unions

A recent survey finds that around 60% of multinational companies operating in Ireland recognise trade unions in at least some of their sites. However, the figure is only 40% among US-owned companies, which form the single largest group of multinationals in Ireland. When multinationals that recognise unions at existing Irish operations open new sites, many of these sites do not recognise a union.

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Poland: Government increases minimum wage by 20%

In September 2007, the government announced that the statutory national minimum wage will be increased by 20.3% from January 2008 - the highest annual increase since the minimum wage was introduced.

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Spain: One employee in five says they have been bullied at work

Recently published research finds that 19% of employees report having suffered psychological harassment, or bullying, at work. Further, 8% of women and 3% of men state that they have been the victims of workplace sexual harassment.

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RELATED ARTICLES ON XPERTHR

EU: Final text of information and consultation Directive

European Works Councils: EWC agreed for ArcelorMittal

International: Two new global accords on CSR and labour standards

France: Overtime pay exempted from tax

Poland: Government to set 2007 minimum wage

International: European minimum wage survey

Germany: Bargaining system may be fragmenting

In recent years, the emergence of occupational and sectional trade unions has started to challenge Germany's traditional bargaining model of a single union in each workplace and a single collective agreement for each industry. We review the latest developments and ask if a serious disintegration of collective representation may be ahead.

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Ireland: Workplace biometrics cause controversy

In recent months, Ireland’s data protection commissioner has been expressing increasing concern - shared by some trade unions - about the spread of workplace biometric systems that use data such as fingerprints and handprints to monitor employees’ attendance.

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Italy: Chemicals deal sparks row over decentralisation of bargaining

Trade unions and employers’ organisations in the chemicals sector recently concluded a ground-breaking accord that allows, under certain conditions, company-level deviations from the terms of the industry-wide collective agreement. The deal, welcomed by employers, has caused a major controversy within the trade union movement, with some leading officials fearing that Italy’s industry-based collective bargaining system could be undermined.

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RELATED ARTICLES ON XPERTHR

Germany: Bargaining study highlights pay settlement upturn

Italy: Ground-breaking agreement signed in chemicals

Also in European Employment Review

There is a full contents list for this month’s European Employment Review on XpertHR. This page also includes a country search: click on the name of the country that interests you to display all new articles about that country.

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XpertHR gets a redesign

XpertHR has been given a new look and feel to help make it easier than ever to find the resources you need. The first major redesign in six years introduces a cleaner, more modern feel. Although the content remains as comprehensive as ever, our aim has been to improve your ability to browse and search the site.

One of the first changes you will notice is that all articles have an icon to show what you can expect to find if you follow the link. Most of these are fairly obvious - a % sign for surveys and a clock face for the legal timetable, for example. But there is also an explanation of what each of the icons means.

These icons can be used to improve searches on XpertHR. Once your search results appear, click on a relevant icon to prioritise the type of article you want – whether it is a line manager briefing, a reference manual chapter, a case report or “how to” guidance.

As you use the site, we hope you will find it easier on the eye and simpler to use than before. However, if you want to find out how to get even more out of XpertHR, we have also expanded and improved the user guide.

Today's tip: daily updates

If you want to keep tabs on a particular topic or you just can’t wait for the next European Employment Review newsletter, sign up for an XpertHR daily update. Go to My XpertHR and choose what interests you. Each day we add new articles, an email will be sent to you.

IRS conference: Performance Management

This one-day conference, to be held on 7 November 2007 in London, will provide best practice in aligning performance with strategic goals and how to make performance management work for your organisation. It will feature case studies from West Bromwich Building Society and the London Borough of Sutton. Find out more…

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