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TUC Education European ReviewNumber Issue 45 December 2008 In this issue :
Welcome to the nineteenth issue of the new-look European Review which will be emailed four times a year as a supplement to those registered to receive TUC Education Update. A hard copy will also be posted to Union Education Officers, TUC course co-ordinators and tutors. Everyone with an interest in European affairs as they affect trade unionists can still access the magazine online at http://www.tueip.dircon.co.uk/ or at http://www.unionlearn.org.uk/education/index.cfm?mins=88 Bargaining round upSOCIAL PARTNERS AND POLITICAL PARTIES IN LITHUANIA have concluded an agreement which is designed to ensure gender equality in fact as well as in law. Although, as an EU member, the country has implemented the Community's equality directives, the signatories admit 'there is some space to ensure de facto equal rights for men and women in practice'. As well as seeking active participation by women in decision-making processes, the labour market, economy, and education, unions, employers and politicians want both the media and authorities to pay more attention to gender equality and equal opportunities, and to help to eliminate negative gender stereotypes. They envisage using EU Structural Funds to support education programmes and municipal activities particularly those initiated by women. Three different trade union confederations were parties to the agreement. GERMAN WORKERS IN THE ENGINEEERING SECTOR backed up a recent 8% pay claim with warning strikes. In a rolling programme of walk-outs tens of thousands of the 3.6 million employed in the industry protested against the employers' offer which the IG Metall union says does not compensate them for inflation. German employers group Gesamtmetall warned that strikes at this time when the financial crisis had caused companies like Daimler, BMW and Opel to temporarily close factories, would eventually hurt the workers themselves. As financial news got worse the two sides came together however, with an eventual settlement of 4.2%. Although the percentage of unemployed Germans fell to under 3% in October this figure was expected to rise as the global recession caught up with the country. A DIPLOMATIC ROW BETWEEN GOVERNMENTS has had unforeseen repercussions on workers in Estonia. When, in May 2007, the Estonian authorities moved a second world war memorial to Soviet soldiers from its site in the capital, Tallinn, the Russian government objected. At the same time the volume of traffic on Estonian railways from its giant neighbour markedly decreased. By August the Estonian Railways company had announced that 200 jobs were to go out of a total of about 2,350. Worse was to come however as further redundancies were made this year which will bring the total to 453 by the end of 2008. The Estonian Railworkers' Trade Union (ERAÜ) picketed government buildings to demand a state subsidy, negotiations with Russia and a railway development plan. In the meantime the union warns that safety may be compromised as insufficient staff will be left to cover those on leave and that it is prepared to take further industrial action. On the government's part an expert group on railways has been formed but the Minister of Economic Affairs rules out interference in 'personnel policy'. Deal on Works Councils means hope for new EU lawFOLLOWING EXTENSIVE REPRESENTATIONS TO THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION by the ETUC (see issue 43) the proposal for a revision of the 1994 directive on European Works Councils, published in the summer, was reasonably acceptable to trade unions. Since then it has entered the parliamentary process, more amendments being made in committee, and it was hoped that agreement could be reached between the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers, currently led by France, enabling its swift adoption. This was achieved in December with Socialist MEPs claiming victory in the details. Stephen Hughes, group spokesman on employment, highlighted the provisions on informing workers of restructuring even if their company's HQ was in another Member State, sanctions against employers in breach of the directive and the removal of a 50-worker threshold before a works council can be set up, as evidence of the progress made. Other updates to the law will tighten the definitions of 'information' and 'consultation', define the powers of a works council and enable employee representatives to receive appropriate training without loss of wages. Although the parliamentary committee voted for the amendments by 36 votes to 1 the rapporteur, British centre-right MEP Philip Bushill-Matthews, was not pleased with the outcome but his claims that the text would not be passed by the full parliament proved false. Employers' body Business Europe was also put out: spokesman Jorgen Rønnest said the amendments introduced by the Socialist Group were 'completely unacceptable' and 'upset the balance' between the social partners. However in the end the desire of the French government to pass the legislation before their stint as EU President finished at the end of 2008 overcame these objections. 'Courageous' MEPs vote to ditch work hours opt-outTHE DEBATE ON THE REVISION of the EU's Working Time directive, which has been going on since 2003, took another turn in December. MEPs voted on a report which recommended the scrapping of the opt-out from a 48-hour maximum working week (mainly used in Britain), the counting of all on-call time as working hours (mainly applicable to health professions) and a tightening of the definition of managers and executives excluded from the directive. These proposals contradicted a deal that Member States had a done in May (see issue 43) whereby the UK, the main obstacle to previous agreements, approved a compromise text on both the revision and a Temporary Agency Workers directive. Trade unions and some MEPs registered their intention to overturn the former. The report, by Spanish socialist Alejandro Cercas, had been approved by a large margin in the Employment Committee but an absolute majority of all MEPs was still needed on each amendment. A close finish was expected but, in the event, with 15,000 workers demonstrating in the streets of Strasbourg, the magic figure of 393 was passed on all of them. Reaction was swift with UK Business minister Lord Mandelson vowing 'to protect the opt-out' although 13 out of 19 Labour MEPs voted the other way. UEAPME, for European small businesses, bemoaned the 'serious effects' that the decision would have on their members 'already harshly hit by the economic crisis'. But TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber pointed to the half a million British workers putting in more than 60 hours a week and believed that 'courageously ... MEPs have dealt Scrooge employers a big blow, and the long hours culture will now become part of Christmas past'. There will now be an 8-week period of negotiation to reconcile parliament and the Council of Ministers. European Chemicals Agency puts REACH into actionAFTER THE SEEMINGLY ENDLESS NEGOTIATIONS on the new EU chemicals law, REACH, the agency set up by it has finally started work. The European Chemicals Agency or ECHA has hit the ground running, its headquarters in Helsinki handled more than two million pre-registrations, fifteen times more than expected, of over 100,000 substances before the deadline of 1st. December. The agency's web site REACH-IT was continuously upgraded as over 4,000 users accessed the site at peak times in late November; half the submissions arriving in the last three weeks. Pre-registration is a way for companies to notify the agency of possible dangerous chemicals which they are using and allows them more time to complete the more rigorous and expensive process of full registration. Companies that fail to pre-register cannot continue manufacturing or importing their substance until they have submitted a full registration dossier. It seems that many chemical firms simply sent in details of all the substances that they use and many of these were duplicated by feeder companies in the supply chain. Numbers of submissions per Member State seem to reflect the size of each chemical industry with Germany most active followed by the UK and France. Companies also sent in about 2,500 questions about the process. 
Another achievement by the new agency has been the compiling of a candidate list of Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) for authorisation. Fifteen chemicals including carcinogens, mutagens, repro-toxins and bioaccumulatives have been identified. Suppliers of items containing these substances must provide information including safety data sheets to customers and consumers. If they make it onto the final 'authorisation list' they cannot be manufactured or imported in any amount except for specific uses where the EU feels the risks are properly controlled or the benefits outweigh them. The intention is to progressively substitute them with alternative technologies. Riots highlight work/economy problems in GreeceRECENT BRITISH PRESS HEADLINES have given more space to Greece than at any time since the Olympic games of 2004. Usually content to report the misdemeanours of over-excited tourists in certain summer resorts, the consecutive nights of rioting in Athens and other Greek cities have alerted the outside world to deeper problems in the country. The roots of these are no doubt various but a recent survey from Eurofound appears to offer some pointers. Although the employment rate for Greek men is similar to the EU average the rate for women is far lower and among young people unemployment is estimated at 19%. The option of working part-time or in temporary jobs is severely limited in Greece with only about 10% of women (EU average 30%) and practically no men on reduced hours. Working without a contract is about three times more common for Greeks than for Europeans generally and they work longer hours than anyone in the EU apart from the Romanians. The pace of work has been increasing in all Member States but Greece is well above the mean for both intensity and lack of control of workflow by the worker. On both access to computers and the internet, and training, the Greek figure is well below EU standards, less than half in the case of training paid-for by the employer.
Athens's Christmas tree burns in front of the parliament symbolising Greece's problems The outcome of these inferior conditions seems to be a high score on work-related health problems: over 68% of Greek workers report an adverse effect, the highest percentage of all EU countries, yet levels of health-related absence are well below average. Not surprisingly the proportion of employees who are 'very satisfied' or 'satisfied' with their working conditions is lower in Greece than anywhere else except Romania and Turkey. When added to price increases, a slowing economy and an expected 100,000 redundancies next year these problems provide all the ingredients for social turmoil. 'Working conditions in Greece from a comparative EU perspective, with special attention to an ageing workforce' is available at: http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/docs/events Childcare targets missed in most EU Member StatesIN 2002 THE EU SUMMIT MEETING in Barcelona set targets for the provision of childcare in the Member States. The idea was to increase equality between women and men in ease of access to the labour market, improve work/life balance and alleviate poverty, particularly in lone-parent households where women faced obstacles to paid employment. It is estimated that more than 6 million women across the EU are prevented from working as they wish by family responsibilities. Access to good quality, affordable childcare available at convenient times is vital if this problem is to be solved. The Council of Ministers set 2010 as the year when the Barcelona targets must be met. These are: 90% of children between 3 years old and school age, and 33% of those under 3, using childcare facilities. Now, with the deadline fast approaching, a European Commission report has concluded that it is likely that most countries will miss the targets. Only five Member States (Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden) are at the under-threes mark while eight still have less than 10% of the youngest children in childcare. The record is a bit better for older kids with eight countries having already reached the target. Although national governments have the greatest role to play, the EU has made €500 million directly available for developing childcare facilities with another €2.4 billion for general work/life balance measures. The Commission will also continue to monitor progress through high quality statistics and promote research and exchange of experiences between countries. The report notes that there are two main obstructions in the way of further progress which may be summarised as quality and cost. The percentage of the actual price for under-threes paid by the parent can vary between 5% and 30% and in most countries different systems exist side by side with public places generally being affordable but hard to obtain, vice versa for private facilities. For the over-threes it is more usual for pre-school classes to be free. Quality, especially in care for the youngest children often comes down to staff training. Qualified workers are at a premium and are not attracted by the prevalence of part-time and temporary contracts. However benefits are being felt from the progress that has been made already: there has been a marked expansion in employment in the sector (95% of the workforce being female) and states which have taken most measures to help women into work enjoy the highest birth rates, defusing the 'demographic time bomb'. Vladimír Špidla, the EU employment commissioner commented: 'Childcare is a vital ingredient in facing up to demographic ageing: without proper support services, parents are less likely to have children. The current provision remains inadequate'. Go North to be happy in EUEUROFOUND WHICH RESEARCHES INTO living and working conditions in Europe has conducted a survey on an unusual subject: happiness. 35,000 people from all the EU Member States plus 3 candidate countries and Norway were asked 'Taking all things together, how happy would you say you are, on a scale from 1 to 10?' Overall a quite high average figure of 7.5 was registered across the EU but this disguised significant variations between countries. The Nordic nations came out top with Denmark leading the way on 8.4. Unsurprisingly there was a strong correlation between high income levels, security of employment and strong health and education systems, and happiness. The new Member States of eastern Europe were at the bottom of the league table although Portugal, Greece and Italy shared similar scores, Bulgaria being in last place on 5.8. Health is very important for 81% of Europeans surveyed with more people in the new members and candidates rating their health as 'bad or very bad'. Separate questions were asked about mental health which resulted in a marked spread from 47 out of a 100 in Turkey to a score of 70 in Norway. Although having a job leads to greater satisfaction with life and unemployed people report higher levels of depression and unhappiness, work/life balance seems to be a problem for many Europeans. Nearly half of those in work say that they are too tired to do household chores several times a month and 29% have difficulty fulfilling family responsibilities. The countries of south-east Europe, where working hours are generally longer, have the biggest problem here. These duties still fall overwhelmingly on women, an average of 51 hours per week as against 28 for men. Irish partnership comes back to life as economy nose-divesDESPITE PREVIOUS REPORTS OF ITS DEMISE (see our last issue) the national social partnership in Ireland appears to have been resurrected, at least in transitional form. Under pressure from the government due to the country's rapidly worsening financial situation leaking into the real economy, unions and employers concluded a 'transitional agreement'. The Irish government are anxious to reduce budget deficits and would have welcomed the 'pay pause' of eleven months agreed for the public sector echoed by one of three months in private firms. After these halts pay will be increased by 3.5% with an extra 2.5% later in the 21-month term of the plan. At this point low-paid workers will receive another 0.5%. Two other noteworthy features of the deal concern 'inability to pay' and 'fat cats'. Any employer who says that they cannot afford the deal can take their case to the labour court (see issue 40) while companies have signed up to 'encourage their members to ensure that pay moderation is also observed in respect of executive pay'. On other issues the agreement covers temporary agency workers, previously thought to be a stumbling block, arbitration, victimisation and pensions under TUPE, and commits the partners to modernising public services. Unions were concerned that agency workers could be used as strike-breakers and have secured a national framework for their employment rights. Perhaps not surprisingly after the length and difficulty of the negotiations both sides are struggling to keep all their team onside. The Unite union have recommended rejection of the deal while the employers in the construction sector, CIF, have expressed disappointment that their pay pause is not longer. Union-busted Turkish workers are 'fashion victims'AFTER DISQUIETING STORIES ABOUT lack of attention to health and safety in Turkish workplaces (see our last issue), it seems that some employers are also indulging in union-busting. Leather goods manufacturer DESA took exception to the efforts of the Deri-Is trade union to recruit its employees. Arbitrary dismissals were followed up by intimidation and even an instance of bribery as the general manager declared at a meeting with union members 'Even if all the 701 workers in the factory, including myself join the union I will never accept it. Know this well: This is a 35-year old firm. There has never been a trade union here and there never will be!'. The factory, located in the outskirts of Istanbul, supplies handbags and jackets to fashion labels Prada and Mulberry who were accused of turning a blind eye by Neil Kearney, General Secretary of the International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers Federation (ITGLWF). He branded the companies the 'see no evil, hear no evil' twins of high fashion for their failure to take action.
Emire Aslan outside the DESA factory making high fashion leather goods The workers had attempted to join a union in order to remedy health and safety lapses and long hours without breaks. After being sacked they were banned by court order from demonstrating in the 'industrial zone' around the factory but Emine Aslan who was fired on June 2, after eight years' service, is continuing a lone vigil outside the gate. Mr. Kearney called on DESA to reinstate the sacked employees with full pay from the date of their dismissal, to recognise the union and to set up 'mature systems of industrial relations'. The ITGLWF wants to meet both the company and outside buyers and stress the role that Prada and Mulberry should play. 'Unfortunately, Prada and Mulberry might be high in fashion but they appear to be low in demanding supplier ethics', concluded Mr. Kearney. Unions urge governments to spend as recession wave crashes inAs a Wall Street financial crisis rapidly turns into a worldwide slump in the real economy, trade unions have added demands for government spending to previous calls for interest rate cuts and the end of wage moderation. 'Green industry' and re-regulation of markets are also near the top of the union shopping list. But are world leaders listening and is it 'too little too late' anyway? THE WORLD ECONOMIC SITUATION has been changing with frightening speed since the big American financial institutions began to struggle last summer. Although the smoke has not yet cleared it seems certain that most EU Member States are in for a rocky 2009 as GDP, employment and credit all head south. European trade unions have long been advocating the interest rate cuts that both the Bank of England and the European Central Bank have largely made but, in response to the latest crisis, they are demanding much more. The European Commission announced in November a package of measures designed to put €200 billion back into the EU economy, representing about 1.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Most of this will be spent by national governments. Energy and broadband IT infrastructures will be upgraded and spending on education and retraining will be stepped up. Payments from the structural and social funds will be accelerated and the Globalisation Adjustment Fund will have a wider scope so as to allow it to keep workers in their present jobs. New 'Green', investment will include €5 billion for cars, €1 billion for energy-efficient buildings and €1.2 billion to develop 'factories of the future'. The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) welcomed this European Recovery Plan in contrast to some Member States who, it said, had given it a 'lukewarm reception' but outlined various shortcomings. The chief of these was the Commission's insistence on maintaining a 3% maximum for annual government budget deficits in each country. This meant that most national governments had very little room to inject the amount of money into their economies that the plan envisaged. The ETUC sought to build on the Commission's plan in producing their own document. They start from the position that if nothing is done the whole European economy will go into a 'downwards tailspin', that it is 'crystal clear that markets do not solve everything' and that Europe-wide co-ordination is necessary to stop individual countries adopting 'beggar-my-neighbour' policies. Accordingly it advocates an immediate economic stimulus of 1% of GDP aimed primarily at saving jobs. This would be followed by a 'New Green Deal' worth another 1%. In the first phase the unions want unemployment benefits to be strengthened by extending eligibility and duration with extra payments for temporary workers who are often excluded. Investment in skills and lifelong learning should be increased and employment expanded in sectors such as care for children and the elderly. To prevent a downwards spiral in prices the ETUC recommends that 'wage floors' be put into place to maintain workers' spending power. These could involve the use of statutory minimum wages, minimum incomes guaranteed by social security and/or legal extensions of collective bargaining. Both the European Metalworkers' Federation (EMF) and the Party of European Socialists (PES) stressed the need to re-regulate financial markets. Meeting in Manchester the PES declared 'So now it's clear for all to see: sometimes the market is the problem and government is the solution' while the EMF demanded that the banks be prevented from taking homes and jobs away from the working people who had bailed them out. Meanwhile fast-moving economic tides affected all Member States with 400,000 migrant workers expected to return to Poland and large-scale redundancies announced in the Spanish car and aviation industries. The UK's aggressive interest rate cuts seemed to have led to a run on the pound which revived calls for the country to adopt the euro. In Germany, initial criticism by Chancellor Merkel of the recovery plan as 'senseless spending' gave way to plans for a €30 billion package of measures to be announced once President-elect Obama reveals his cash injection into the US economy, expected to be worth 3% of GDP, proportionally twice the size of the EU plan. However the increasingly grand schemes only served to emphasise the scale and unpredictability of the crisis. Recent rulings from the European Court of JusticeHome base still counts for law of land The case of a Swedish lorry driver on a regular run to Italy has been the occasion of protracted legal argument at the ECJ. Mr. Holmqvist's company went bust in 2006 and under Swedish law, based on the EU Insolvency directive, he assumed that the wages he was owed would be paid by the state. However the Swedish government decided that, because most of his work was carried out in Italy and the countries he crossed to get there, he must apply elsewhere. Because the directive says that employees working for a company 'with activities in the territories of at least two Member States' must apply to the country where they do most of their work the case turned on what constituted 'activities'. The court rejected the idea, put forward by the European Commission, that this meant they must have at least an office in a second country because of the development of the internet etc. but concluded that a 'stable economic presence' was needed and the mere delivery of goods did not fulfil this condition. EU to get tough on German 'Volkswagen law' Last year we reported (issue 41) on the decision of the court against the so-called Volkswagen law. The ECJ ruled that it was incompatible with EU legislation for the German government to try and protect the company from takeover. Now it seems a new law, which tries to do much the same thing, will also fall foul of the EU authorities. The German parliament recently passed a bill which allows the local authorities in Lower Saxony, where Volkswagen are located, to veto board decisions even though they own less than 25% of the shares. Porsche, which now owns nearly 75%, warned that this would cause trouble in Brussels. However unions, Volkswagen workers and local government leaders are in favour while Chancellor Angela Merkel believes the new measure takes ECJ objections into account. Chinese toys and food on EU safety agendaAFTER LAST YEAR'S agreement on dangerous product notification which followed safety scares centred on Chinese-made toys, the EU Consumer Affairs Commissioner, Meglena Kuneva, has reached a further understanding with Chinese officials on information and co-operation. A more recent scandal involving baby milk powder, which was responsible for the deaths of 4 infants and put another 53,000 in hospital, provided extra impetus for the deal. China will now be obliged to inform the EU of what it has done to track down dangerous goods and allow European officials to use this information to co-ordinate checks. As well as Chinese access to the non-food RAPEX product alert system, which started last year, the Commission will now also allow information from RASFF, the equivalent system for food products, to be exchanged with the Chinese. The deal 'substantially strengthens the systems of safety controls for product and food safety between the EU and China' said Ms. Kuneva. In a separate initiative the European Parliament is readying a new directive on toy safety. Socialists on the Internal Market Committee managed to insert a ban on allergenic fragrances as well as carcinogens and repro-toxins into the proposed law. However they were disappointed that independent assessment by an outside agency was not approved. They plan to try again when the issue is debated by the full session of the parliament.
According to the committee chair Arlene McCarthy 'Our current toy safety law ... does not tackle the risks with imported toys given that 80% of toys EU-wide are imported from China'. Nanos spark more concern in France, Netherlands, UKAS NANOPARTICLES, SUBSTANCES THAT HAVE BEEN altered at a microscopic level, appear in more and more products some unions and governments are pushing for more control and evaluation of them. Currently the European Commission is conducting a 'public dialogue' on the subject (see issue 43). They have funded a new body called NanoImpactNet which brings together scientists, industrialists, politicians and campaigners but Dutch union confederation FNV say that voluntary codes, which encourage producers of nanos to publicise their use, are not working. Consequently, they add, it is not known which products contain nanos and where they enter the manufacturing process of those that do. Even if this problem could be overcome, the unions believe that the Dutch Labour Inspectorate does not have the information to advise employers on protective measures for workers. They point to two solutions, one is the French government's approach in preparing a compulsory notification scheme for manufacturers and importers of nanomaterial. The second is the general precautionary principle embodied in the new REACH EU directive. FNV say that REACH's 'no data = no market' should mean 'no data = no exposure'. However they criticise the law's 10 tonnes per annum limit which excludes substances used in smaller quantities. They conclude that if EU legislation is not changed, national measures must be passed for compulsory registration and research undertaken to establish safe exposure limits. In the UK a report by the consumer group Which? probed the use of nanoparticles in cosmetics. Only 8 of 67 companies approached were willing to provide information but confirmed their use in face creams and sunscreens including some aimed at children. The highly respected Royal Society conducted their own study in 2004 and, since then, 'has been calling, for the last four years, for companies to make public the safety testing methods they have been using on their nanoproducts. We are disappointed at continuing lack of transparency in this area'. Reps are the key to H & S says Euro-expertTHE EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION's (ETUC) health and safety arm has highlighted the beneficial effect that union reps have on workplace health and safety. Writing in the newsletter of HESA, director Laurent Vogel notes that while research into how H & S is influenced by union workplace organisation is thin on the ground, 'All the available evidence points towards the existence of such representation being closely associated with a more systematic organization of prevention'. He states that in many countries the health and safety reps. network is the most widespread form of shopfloor representation. However, he cautions, just the presence of a rep is no guarantee of effective action: training, information, access to outside expertise and the backing of a strong trade union are all decisive factors. There are still not nearly enough reps and they are less prevalent in small firms, in workplaces with many temporary agency workers and at sub-contractors. Ways around these problems are being found: district safety reps can cover many small and medium sized businesses and site co-ordination committees can include all the different companies in a sub-contracted workplace. But, according to Mr.Vogel, the goal of the safety rep system must be for workers to gain control over their working conditions by asking tough questions about work organisation. Commission to enforce anti rip-off law for air ticket web sitesA NEW EU REGULATION, THAT CAME into force at the start of November, aims to force airlines to equalise ticket prices in different Member States and to ensure that there are no hidden extras lurking when a booking is made on the web. A survey conducted earlier in the year found that 58% of web sites contained misleading prices and 49% included unfair practices such as pre-checked boxes for optional add-ons and missing or incorrect language versions. At least eighty companies were involved but legislation in most countries prevents their identification. However information from Sweden and Norway suggests household names such as Ryanair and Austrian Airlines are culpable. Before the new measure it was possible for the same seat on the same flight to be sold for different prices at the same moment, depending on where the buyer's computer was located or even their country of residence, which could be traced through the customer's credit card number. This practice is now illegal, while any price supplements must be laid out upfront in a 'clear, transparent and unambiguous way' on an opt-in basis. Although the Commission also took new powers to oblige national governments to suspend operating licences, it seems that it is not convinced that companies are observing the new rules. 'My message to the airline industry is very clear - full compliance with EU is an obligation, not an option' declared Consumer Commissioner Meglena Kuneva warning airlines that if they are still offending by next May they will be named and shamed. Websites mentioned in this issue are available at: European Commission Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities Europeana - original site development site European Chemicals Agency REACH-IT New EU portal aims to help on employment and equalityTHE SECTION OF THE EU WHICH LOOKS after employment, social affairs and equal opportunities has launched an internet gateway that will provide information on EU policies both for citizens and, in a more detailed and technical form, for experts and the mass media. Under a tab headed 'About us' a page explains how EU policies and funding support 'more and better jobs', 'better working conditions', 'social inclusion and non-discrimination', and 'equality between men and women'. Other tabs give access to an 'e-library' with links to documents and legislation, as well as online videos; news, features, events and campaigns ('What's new') and help with employment, pensions, discrimination and poverty ('Working for you'). The portal aims to cover job opportunities, social security rights, living and working conditions for people who choose to move to another EU country; rights and obligations under EU legislation; funding opportunities and examples of projects financed by the EU. It will also detail co-operation between EU countries to tackle unemployment, poverty, and the challenges linked to Europe's ageing population; facts and figures about the labour market, as well as demographic and social trends in the EU and the important role played by trade unions, employers and non-governmental organisations. Latest figures show slide into slumpThe latest numbers from the EU's statistical arm Eurostat show that there was a decline in both output and prices at the factory gate between July and September. Over the whole Community Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell by 0.2% compared to the period from April to June (2nd quarter). Among countries that have posted figures so far about half seem to have gone into economic reverse. Comparing the 2nd quarter of this year with April-June 2007, for which all Member States have declared returns, the pace setters were still from the East with Romania and Slovakia leading the way by recording 8% plus increases. However former boom states Latvia and Estonia had already slipped into recession. Industrial producer prices fell in September by 0.2% compared to August but were still 10.1% up over the past year
Massive EU culture web site crashes on take-offHAVING COLLECTED IMAGES OF OVER three million items from Europe's world famous museums and galleries the EU was prepared for a grand launch of its 'Europeana' web site in November. Unfortunately the digital library, which includes paintings, photographs, objects, books, newspapers, archival records, films and sound, in 23 languages, proved too popular for its own good and slowed to a crawl as ten million people per hour attempted to access it. Despite adding an extra computer server to cater for the unanticipated demand, the European Commission concluded that it was best to temporarily close the site and took it down after less than 24 hours. Although regretting the closure the Commission believed it 'an encouraging sign that citizens in Europe and around the world have great interest in Europe's digital library'. They hope to re-open a 'more robust version' soon. In the meantime you can access the development web page and see a demonstration of what the site will contain when it's up and running again.
Education ministers assess Lisbon progress and map future programmeNOW THAT THE EU IS NEARING the end of the Lisbon process of modernisation begun in 2000 a stock-taking is under way. The deadline is 2010 and this also applies to subsidiary programmes such as 'Education and Training 2010' which includes the 'Copenhagen' process for vocational education and training (VET). Under the French presidency, which ended at the turn of the year, education ministers from the Member States met in Bordeaux to consider what has been achieved, the remaining problems and future priorities for post-2010 strategy. They lauded the setting up of the Europass which enables young people to undertake vocational training in foreign EU countries, and the European Qualifications Framework which allows comparison between different Member States' systems. They also expect a European Credit system for VET and a framework for quality assurance to be in operation soon. These initiatives have influenced national policies, according to the ministers, in the direction of greater mobility, transparency and trust. Persistent problems were identified such as youth unemployment (still at an average 15.5% in 2007), too many young people leaving school without exam success (14.8% against the 2010 target of 10%) and low levels of education among working adults (78 million between the ages of 25 and 64) often due to non-availability of training in smaller firms and to older workers. Despite the current economic crisis and consequent loss of jobs the 'Bordeaux communiqué envisages 20 million being created before 2020, partly due to technological progress which will require VET to adapt workers' skills. The ageing of the EU's population will also reduce the numbers working by 6 million leading to a possible 'skills gap'. By 2020, it says, 31.5% of jobs in the European Community will require university/college graduates and another 50% students who have either obtained qualifications at school or who have equivalent vocational training standards. This means greater involvement of the higher education sector in VET: 'Bridges should be built between general education, vocational training and higher education'. To this end European universities have adopted a 'Charter on Lifelong Learning' which aims to make them more inclusive by broadening the range of learners, particularly over-25s by accrediting both formal and informal prior learning. In general the ministers see mobility and co-operation between Member States as remaining crucial to the future VET programme as well as maintaining both the quality assurance and attractiveness of this form of education. The 'Bordeaux Communiqué on enhanced European cooperation in vocational education and training' is available at: http://www.ue2008.fr/PFUE/lang/en/accueil/PFUE-11_2008/PFUE-26.11.2008 Diary: conferences and coursesOrganising Polish migrant workers seminar 26 January TUC, Congress House, Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3LS Anjum Klair Tel: 020 7467 1204 Email: aklair@tuc.org.uk http://www.tuc.org.uk/events/detail.cfm?event=3032 Participation by workers and workers' reps: key to successful risk assessment 26-27 January ETUI-REHS, Boulevard du Roi Albert II, 5, box 7, B1210 Brussels, Belgium Dominique Schwan Tel: +32 2 224 0560 Fax: +32 2 224 0561 dschwan@etui.org http://hesa.etui-rehs.org Building a bridge between international and national strategies on health and safety at work 28-30 January BGAG, German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV), DGUV Academy, Dresden, Germany Anja Koehler Tel: +49 351 457 1325 Fax: +49 351 457 201602 Email: anja.koehler@dguv.de http://www.dguv.de/bgag/de/veranstaltungen French for European trade unionists (intermediate) 9-19 February ETUI-REHS, Boulevard du Roi Albert II, 5, box 7, B1210 Brussels, Belgium Vidia Ganase Tel: +32 2 224 0530 Fax: +32 2 224 0520 Email: vganase@etui.org http://www.etui-rehs.org/education/courses/2008-2009/852.06
Newsletter (6,600 words) issued 20 Jan 2009 |
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