{"id":27498,"date":"2025-03-27T09:14:03","date_gmt":"2025-03-27T08:14:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniglobalunion.org\/news\/6th-uni-europa-conference-day-2-workers-demand-real-say-more-pay-across-europe\/"},"modified":"2025-03-27T09:14:03","modified_gmt":"2025-03-27T08:14:03","slug":"6th-uni-europa-conference-day-2-workers-demand-real-say-more-pay-across-europe","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/uniglobalunion.org\/news\/6th-uni-europa-conference-day-2-workers-demand-real-say-more-pay-across-europe\/","title":{"rendered":"6th UNI Europa Conference Day 2: workers demand \u201cReal Say, More Pay\u201d across Europe"},"content":{"rendered":"

The morning sessions kicked off with powerful testimony from Belgian trade unionist Lieveke Norga<\/strong> (ACV-PULS)<\/strong>, who linked the push for shorter working hours to the long legacy of workers\u2019 struggle. \u201cWe continue the historical struggle of free time for working people,\u201d she said, announcing an 8-minute work stoppage on 8 May across Belgium to press for better work-life balance.<\/p>\r\n

\"\"In Ireland, CWU\u2019s Ian McArdle<\/strong> highlighted how workers successfully pressured politicians to back collective bargaining in the last election. \u201cRespect at work shouldn\u2019t be a privilege, it should be a right,\u201d he said. His union, together with three other Irish unions (Mandate, SIPTU and FSU), had received<\/a> the first-ever \u201cForward Through Collective Bargaining\u201d Award.<\/p>\r\n

From Slovakia to Finland, unions described how they are rebuilding power amid hostile conditions. \u201cWe need to find new areas of contract. We need to update our communications,\u201d said Antti Hakala<\/strong> of Finland\u2019s PRO union<\/strong>. In Poland, Wieslawa Mazarska<\/strong> of Solidarnosc<\/strong> described mass protests and strikes at the Polish Post in response to the collapse of a 20-year-old collective agreement.<\/p>\r\n

One central theme of the day \u2013 public procurement reform \u2013 <\/strong>saw trade unionists demand that EU institutions link public contracts to collective agreements. Esther Lynch<\/strong>, General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC)<\/strong>, delivered a rousing address calling out widespread union-busting.<\/p>\r\n

\u201cNo euro of public money should go to companies that bust unions,\u201d Lynch said, citing Tesla as an example of the \u201cgreen transition\u201d being used to justify anti-union behaviour.<\/p>\r\n

\"\"UNI Europa\u2019s campaign \u201cNo Public Contract Without Collective Agreement\u201d was repeatedly praised as a blueprint for change. Frank Werneke<\/strong>, President of Germany\u2019s ver.di union<\/strong>, said: \u201cLet\u2019s make this campaign our priority in the coming years,\u201d he told delegates. His union ver.di also won<\/a> the second \u201cForward Through Collective Bargaining\u201d Award for its successful campaign at Deutsche Post, where lower-paid workers received wage increases of more than 16 per cent, and the union won over 20,000 new members.<\/p>\r\n

From Zeynep Bicici<\/strong> (IG-BAU, Germany)<\/strong> calling for an end to the race for the lowest price, to Angeles Romero<\/strong> (CCOO, Spain)<\/strong> advocating for social criteria in procurement laws, delegates stressed that quality jobs must come before the lowest bid. In a debate with Members of European Parliament, Gaby Bischoff (S&D)<\/strong>, Hanne Gedin (The Left)<\/strong> and Sara Matthieu (Greens)<\/strong> agreed with the need for reform \u2014 and for working together to achieve it.<\/p>\r\n

The conference also spotlighted the criminalisation of union action and wage theft<\/strong>. Norwegian unionist Christopher Beckham<\/strong> called for laws to punish employers who withhold pay. \u201cWage theft is a crime and offenders will be held accountable,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n

In the afternoon, a panel on worker well-being tackled the future of union strategy in the digital and post-pandemic workplace. Speakers addressed AI, remote work, and mental health \u2014 calling for renewed focus on \u201ccutting-edge collective bargaining\u201d to keep pace with change.<\/p>\r\n

\"\"Wrapping up the day, Dr Caoimhe Archibald<\/strong>, Minister for the Economy in Northern Ireland, spoke about the Good Jobs Bill and the importance of a strong labour movement: \u201cA key measure of an economy\u2019s success is the extent to which it provides workers and their families with a decent income [… ]. This logic is reflected in the theme of this year\u2019s conference: Real Say, More Pay.\u201d\u00a0The fireside chat with Owen Reidy<\/strong> (ICTU) and Dave Ward<\/strong> (CWU) reaffirmed the growing support among young workers for trade unions \u2014 and the necessity of organising them.<\/p>\r\n

The message of the second day of the 6th UNI Europa Conference was clear: Europe needs bold, enforceable rules to protect workers\u2019 rights \u2014 and unions are ready to lead that fight.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The morning sessions kicked off with powerful testimony from Belgian trade unionist Lieveke Norga (ACV-PULS), who linked the push for shorter working hours to the long legacy of workers\u2019 struggle. \u201cWe continue the historical struggle of free time for working people,\u201d she said, announcing an 8-minute work stoppage on 8 May across Belgium to press<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":27502,"template":"","categories":[41],"global-issues":[],"sectors":[],"cross-sector-groups":[],"workers-rights":[],"regions":[84],"topics":[49,180,178,181,62],"class_list":["post-27498","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","regions-uni-europa","topics-artificial-intelligence","topics-collective-bargaining","topics-equality","topics-mental-health","topics-remote-work"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n6th UNI Europa Conference Day 2: workers demand \u201cReal Say, More Pay\u201d across Europe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" 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