IR Notes

On 13 December 2013, the European Commission adopted a communication concerning an “EU quality framework for the anticipation of change and restructuring”.  This document will disappoint those members of the European Parliament who were expecting the Commission to propose a “legislative act”. It merely recycles, in shorter form, something that the Commission has already published with its “Checklist on restructuring processes”. This document, like the checklist before it, may encourage companies to negotiate agreements intended to provide a framework for restructuring processes. The Commission has said that it “will examine whether it is appropriate to revise it between now and 2016”, thus making 2015 a pivotal year, because the Commission will be presenting its proposal aimed at “consolidating the information and consultation directives”, as announced in its “Refit”communication of 2 October 2013. Before 5 June 2015, it must also produce a report on the application of directive 2009/38 on European Works Councils. This means that there will be opportunities to examine the role of information and consultation in planning restructuring processes.

• Structural funds: The new regulations governing the operation and purposes of the European structural funds have been published in the Official Journal (L347). These include regulations concerning the European Social Fund and the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund, and the common provisions of the different structural funds. The regulation on de minimis aid has also now been published (in Official Journal L352). This concerns aid of less than 200,000 euros over a three-year period that may be paid by a Member State to enterprises in difficulty without giving prior notice to the European Commission.

• Greek presidency of the European Union: Greece has begun its six-month presidency of the European Union. It has set out its priorities on its website. IR Share has published a dossier (in French, available for 19 euros excluding tax) giving an assessment of social dialogue, employment law and the social situation in Greece.

• Hospitals: On 4 December 2013, the social partners in the hospital sector published some guidelines and examples of good practice to deal with the challenge presented by the ageing of the healthcare sector workforce.


• Violence from third parties: The European social partners who signed up to the multi-sectoral guidelines on dealing with violence from third parties in the workplace, adopted on 16 July 2010, published their first report on the implementation of the agreement on 21 November 2013.


• Electricity: In December, the European social partners in the electricity sector adopted a common position on the “2030 framework for climate and energy policies” proposed by the European Commission. The signatories are requesting that this medium-term strategy incorporates “just employment transition principles” and are insisting on the role of social dialogue at all levels in anticipating and managing the change.

• Single employment status takes effect: The law of 26 December 2013 concerning a single status for blue- and white-collar workers as regards notice periods, the waiting period before a benefit is paid, and also support measures, has been published. It entered into force on 1 January 2014. This is a mandatory law, which means that, in principle, it applies to existing contracts. Links to observations from the Belgian Ministry of Labour.

• Vocational training: The social partners reached agreement on the future of vocational training on 14 December 2013. The principal elements of this agreement (in French) are the creation of the individual training account and an overhaul of how the vocational training system is financed and governed. A bill containing the terms of the agreement will be passed by the Council of Ministers on 22 January 2014.

• Working time: New legislation has been passed on part-time work. This legislation is intended to increase the flexibility of working hours and to make part-time contracts more attractive to employers. The age of minor children for whom employees can elect to reduce their working hours has been raised from 8 to 12 years.


• Pensions: The social security reform has been finally approved. The goal is to establish a number of parameters for the initial and successive calculations of the pension amount.


• Restructuring: Redundancies in companies with fewer than 25 employees have become substantially (around 40%) more expensive since 1 January 2014, as a consequence of a new provision eliminating the allowance provided by the Wage Guarantee Fund.


• Social security contributions: New rules have been introduced governing the calculation of the social security contribution base. As a result of these rules, the contribution base will generally rise.

• Banking sector: The social partners within the banking sector met on 7 January 2014 for a second session of negotiations to renew the current collective agreement for the sector, but without securing a deal.

• Working time: Eurofound published an article on 20 December 2013 concerning the law of 12 July 2013 on working time, which entered into force on 23 August, and which included a provision facilitating the annualisation of working hours.

• Fixed-term employment contracts: a new special temporary regime (to be in force until 31 December 2016) allows two additional renewals of a fixed-term employment contract, extending its overall duration (Act No. 76/2013 of 7 November).


• Wages: 50% of the Christmas and the vacation allowances can be paid in twelve instalments also in the private sector. This special statutory regime, which was initially to be applicable only between 1 January and 31 December 2013 (Act No. 11/2013 of 28 January 2013), will remain in force during 2014 (article 257 of the State Budget Law for 2014).

• Loomis: The Swedish cash transport group Loomis AB (22,000 employees) signed an international framework agreement with the Swedish transport workers’ union and UNI Property Service on 13 December 2013. Links to press release from UNI.


• Meliá Hotels International: The Spanish hotel chain (38,000 employees) signed an international framework agreement with the food, agriculture and catering union IUF on 9 December 2013. The agreement applies to all Meliá-branded establishments, even where these are franchise operations or are managed by the chain on behalf of the owner. Links to press releases from the IUF and Meliá Hotels International.


• Solvay: The Belgian chemicals group Solvay (30,000 employees) signed a worldwide social responsibility agreement with IndustriALL Global Union on 17 December 2013. The text specifies that management must adopt a neutral attitude when dealing with a union that wishes to become established at a site in the United States. Link to press release from Solvay.


• IR Doc: Access to framework agreements recently put online on IR Share: Norske Skog (December 2013), SCA (December 2013), Statoil (2005), Veidekke (2005)

• Capio: At its meeting on 19 and 20 September 2013, the Capio group’s European Works Council validated several documents concerning the anti-corruption policy and the whistleblowing policy, and updated the code of conduct (see press release from Capio). “We are now talking about how to implement these documents and monitor their enforcement,” said Kevin Thompson, head of the employees’ representatives on the EWC.


• RATP: The French group RATP (provider of public transport in Paris) held a second session of negotiations on 5 December 2013 to set up a European Works Council.


• Telefónica: The Spanish telecommunications group Telefónica (130,000 employees) renewed its European Works Council agreement, which will be governed by British law, on 29 November 2013.


• Hewlett-Packard: In a statement, the secretary of the European Works Council, Udo Verzagt, explained that negotiations to establish a new agreement, which began after the works council terminated the previous agreement, have failed. Udo Verzagt stated that, as a result, from 24 January, HP will be the first company in Europe having a European works council to see this body cease to function. The employees’ representatives are therefore going to submit an official request for negotiations to begin so that a new EWC can be set up. These negotiations could take up to three years.

• Social relations in 2012: Eurofound has published a comparative study of developments in industrial relations in Europe in 2012, based on the national reports of its 29 correspondents. The document reviews the main political and legislative developments, as well as those relating to social dialogue.


• Unemployment stabilises: The seasonally-adjusted level of unemployment in the eurozone was 12.1% in November 2013, having been stable since April. In the EU, unemployment has been stable at 10.9% since May (Eurostat press release).

Social dialogue is the dominant feature of the system of industrial relations in Europe and is rooted in the continent’s history. The model of industrial relations based on a dialogue between representatives of employers and employees distinguishes Europe from other regions of the world. In Europe, social dialogue takes place at institutional level, where the social partners are consulted, in particular, on matters related to employment and to labour law. It also takes place at interprofessional and sectoral level, between employers’ organisations and employees’ organisations. For further details, please refer to the European Industrial Relations Dictionary.