Under the telecommunications firm's new collective agreement concluded on 30 March, employees will be awarded an individual education budget of EUR 1,150 a year. In a letter sent recently to the Labour Foundation, Minister Vermeend reiterated the call to employers and employees to uphold a policy of wage moderation. According to the minister, high wages erode businesses' ability to maintain a competitive position and impede employment growth. He urges the bargaining parties to uphold the central agreement reached in December. The trade unions are outraged and believe the minister should not interfere with the current collective bargaining round.
Employers seem more receptive to the minister's calls.
This has helped focus attention in the current bargaining round on the public sector. A further NLG 2 billion is needed for readjustment of salary scales, higher wages for trainees, faster progression though pay scales and differentiation of positions. The remaining NLG 2 billion is needed for secondary employment conditions such as childcare, training and education and leave arrangements. AbvaKabo has been very critical of these figures. Furthermore, the union asserts that educational qualifications alone were taken into consideration in the comparison, to the exclusion of the weight of the employee's position.