The trade union ver.di negotiated with the VKA municipal employers’ association to improve working conditions in municipal emergency services. The union is calling for a maximum working week of 44 hours (down from 48) as a first step and other measures to protect the health of employees. Ver.di agreed with employers to gradually reduce weekly working hours (including on-call time) from the current maximum of 45 hours to a maximum of 42 hours by 2028. A union survey of 7,000 emergency service workers revealed long hours, high work intensity, physical and mental stress and 84% of respondents stated that, under current conditions, they would not hold out until retirement.
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For more information, please contact Paul de Beer or Oana Ciuca, De Burcht (Scientific Bureau for the Dutch Trade Union Movement) p.t.debeer@uva.nl or the Head of communications at the ETUI, Mehmet Koksal mkoksal@etui.org. For previous full issues of the Collective bargaining newsletter please visit https://www.etui.org/Newsletters/Collective-bargaining-newsletter or consult the archive with all articles in our database at www.cbnarchive.eu.
You may find further information on the ETUI at www.etui.org.