These encroach on the autonomy of social dialogue and on trade union / employer negotiations. Publishing wage indicators and systematically linking these up with ‘economic governance’ will in practice come at the expense of the bargaining position of trade unions and workers. There will be a race to the bottom.

Brussels, 07/03/2011 Many social protest movements have taken place recently in Europe (Belgium, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Spain, Latvia, etc.) to express the anger of workers against austerity measures and to demand social justice .

The European Trade Union Confederation will hold its 12th Congress from 16 to 19 May 2011 in Athens. A website dedicated to the Congress will be hold on-line early April. Press: journalists from the European press are kindly invited to participate to the ETUC Congress. Thank you for filling in the herewith accreditation form and send it back to us as soon as possible.

Brussels, 28/03/2011 The ETUC regrets that the concerns it expressed during the first phase of the Commission consultation were not sufficiently take into account. The proposals to maintain the opt-out and extend the reference periods, in particular, are at odds with the principles of health and safety at work based on evidence and well-founded research (such as, for example, the evaluation of the impact assessment regarding the WTD and the evolution of working time organisation established by Deloitte).

London, 26/03/2011 Friends, brothers and sisters, I am bringing to you all the warm & fraternal greetings of the European trade union confederation & the 60 million workers behind it. In London today/ in Berlin, Brussels, Riga, Madrid last week, in Budapest soon, workers & their families citizens of Europe are marching the streets for an alternative. You marched the streets & the European workers marched the streets of London with you for social justice & fairness. You want, need & deserve jobs, good jobs.

Brussels, 25/03/2011

Brussels, 23/03/2011 The European Commission's annual growth survey and the competitiveness pact proposed by Chancellor Merkel and President Sarkozy present proposals that put dangerous downward pressure on salaries and social rights.

Brussels, 21/03/2011 Several actions will take place in Brussels on 24 March, to say ‘no’ to austerity plans in Europe, no to cuts in wages and pensions, no to insecurity + unemployment, no to deregulation of labour standards and social regression, and no to rising social inequalities.

Brussels, 15/11/2011 The forthcoming European Council, to be held on 24-25 March, will endorse such proposals designed to exert downward pressure on wages, by limiting pay increases to productivity and implicitly barring wages from reflecting increases in prices. Such policy will systematically redistribute income from wages to profits, dividends and bonuses. If this approach is confirmed, the whole concept of social Europe is being placed in increasing jeopardy. For these reasons, trade union mobilisations are planned in Europe.

Brussels, 16/03/2011

Brussels, 16/03/2011 The European Private Company was first proposed by the European Commission in a draft Council Regulation on a Statute in 2008 as a measure designed to make it easier for small and medium-sized enterprises to do business in the Single Market.

Brussels, 14/03/2011