European Trade Union Committee for Education

On 14-15 February 2017, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) has kicked off the Pay Rise Campaign by a Conference titled: 'Time for Our Recovery – Europe needs a pay rise'. The Conference takes place in Brussels and gathers social partners and decision-makers from all around Europe. The two-day event is organised around four thematic panels, with interventions from numerous speakers involved in Labour, Employment and Social Issues at both the European and national levels.

The conference started with an opening by Luca Visentini (General Secretary of the ETUC) and Sharan Burrow (General Secretary of the ITUC), followed by the interventions of representatives of National Trade Unions Confederations; representatives of Ministries and elected officials in Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, Slovak Republic and representatives of European and International Institutions, such as the European Economic and Social Committee, the European Commission and the OECD. Finally, representatives of European Social Partners will join the discussion.

The aim of the ETUC Pay Rise Campaign is to encourage collective bargaining and negotiations at all levels in order to achieve a generalized rise of European workers’ wages, as a mean to stimulate growth and to enable workers across Europe to recover from the consequences of the economic crisis. ETUCE is attending the event.