Unions News

Gdansk deal and birth of Poland's Solidarity

By AFP

Warsaw - Forty years ago, on August 31, 1980, strikers at Poland's Gdansk shipyard and the communist regime signed an historic deal enabling the creation of Solidarnosc (Solidarity), the Soviet bloc's first independent trade union.

Gdansk deal and birth of Poland's Solidarity

By AFP

Asia's garment workers say virus used as cover to smash unions

By AFP

Bangkok - From factory floors in India to the warehouses of Cambodia, garment workers for global brands say the collapse in demand triggered by the coronavirus is being used as a cover to break their unions.

McDonald's hit with sexual harassment complaint at OECD

By AFP

Washington - An international group of labor unions said Monday it has filed a complaint against McDonald's for what it called systematic sexual harassment at the fast food chain's restaurants around the world.

Unions go virtual as virus wipes out May Day marches

By AFP

Paris - Millions of workers traditionally take to the streets for May Day marches, but with half of humanity in lockdown, this is going to be a May 1 like no other.

Greek health workers demonstrate over coronavirus conditions

By AFP

Athens - Hundreds of Greek healthcare workers demonstrated on Tuesday to protest at working conditions and lack of manpower and equipment in public hospitals during the coronavirus pandemic.

Macron rushed from Paris theatre during protest

By AFP

Paris - French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife were rushed from a Paris theatre late Friday after protesters tried to burst in and disrupt the performance.

French unions vow to stand firm as pension strike softens

By AFP

Paris - Striking workers poured into streets across France Thursday for a sixth day of demonstrations against a pensions overhaul, putting up a show of defiance after Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said the historic transport stoppage "has gone on for too lon...

French unions warn of new protests as pension battle heats up

By AFP

Paris - French union leaders on Friday began crunch meetings with Prime Minister Edouard Philippe and other top officials over a hotly contested pension overhaul that has sparked the country's longest rail strike in history.

Born to revolt: Why the French go on strike

By AFP

Paris - France, it sometimes seems, is either in the throes of a major strike or facing the looming shadow of one. Workers in the country go on strike more than most nations in Europe.

Portugal police march for better wages

By AFP

Lisbon - Thousands of Portuguese police officers Thursday marched through Lisbon to demand better pay and conditions in the first major protest since the Socialists were returned to office in elections last month.

Italian president sets Tuesday deadline to find new coalition

By AFP

Rome - Italian President Sergio Mattarella has set a Tuesday deadline for squabbling political parties to form a workable coalition government, two days after a dysfunctional populist alliance broke up throwing the eurozone's third largest economy into politi...

Italian president sets Tuesday deadline to find new coalition

By AFP

UK facing 'national emergency' as Brexit no-deal fears rise

By AFP

London - Britain faces a "national emergency" as the risk of a no-deal Brexit rises, business and union leaders warned Thursday in an open letter to embattled Prime Minister Theresa May.

Portugal nurses suspend strike but vow to fight on

By AFP

Lisbon - A nurses' strike in Portugal which brought non-essential operations to a standstill for nearly three weeks over demands for higher pay ended on Wednesday after a union called it off, the government said.

Three dead as Zimbabwe tightens crackdown over protests

By AFP

Harare - Three people have been shot dead and many injured, Zimbabwe's main opposition party said Tuesday, as security forces crack down on protests triggered by a sharp, sudden rise in fuel prices.

Three dead as Zimbabwe tightens crackdown over protests

By AFP

Harare - Three people have been shot dead and many injured, Zimbabwe's main opposition party said Tuesday, as security forces crack down on protests triggered by a sharp, sudden rise in fuel prices.

Bolivian doctors announce strike over universal healthcare

By AFP

La Paz - Public sector doctors in Bolivia announced a 48-hour strike on Wednesday in response to a government move to make healthcare free for all."Our goal is to register 5.

Verdict expected in Ford 'Dirty War' trial in Argentina

By AFP

Buenos Aires - A verdict is expected Tuesday in the trial of two former Ford Motor Company executives in Argentina who are accused of participating in the military dictatorship's "dirty war" against leftist dissent.

Low paid workers take strike action for better contracts

By Tim Sandle

Workers in low paid jobs working for large corporations and many from the gig economy took part in a nationwide and coordinated strike in the U.K.. This included people who work at McDonald's and Uber.

Tesla's union-busting trial may challenge Silicon Valley

By Ken Hanly

While unions are generally weak in the U.S., in the auto sector there are still strong unions. Tesla is an auto maker but also a key tech firm. The tech sector and Silicon Valley firms are almost free of unions except for a few contract workers.

Uber, Cabify drivers protest in Madrid against rule changes

By AFP

Madrid - Hundreds of drivers for ride-hailing services Uber and Cabify marched down a central Madrid avenue on Thursday to protest plans by the Spanish government to tighten regulations in the sector.The demonstrators chanted "Let us work!

160 workers freed after Istanbul airport protest

By AFP

Ankara - Turkey has freed 160 workers out of almost 600 who were arrested following a protest over work-related deaths and poor conditions at the construction site for Istanbul's third airport.

Police arrest protesters at at new Istanbul airport site

By AFP

Istanbul - Turkish police on Saturday arrested at least 20 people as they broke up a protest against work-related deaths and poor conditions at the construction site of Istanbul's third airport, touted to be the world's largest airport when completed.

Ryanair defiant as German pilots and crew walk out

By AFP

Berlin - Irish budget carrier Ryanair was defiant Wednesday as dozens of flights were disrupted in a walkout by German pilots and cabin crew, the latest flare-up in a bitter Europe-wide battle for better pay and conditions.

German strike plunges Ryanair into fresh turmoil

By AFP

Frankfurt Am Main - Thousands of Ryanair passengers faced travel disruption Wednesday as German pilots and cabin crew walked off the job, in the latest flare-up of a bitter Europe-wide battle for better pay and conditions.

Spain sex workers claim same labour rights as others

By AFP

Barcelona - Spain's first sex workers union on Friday asked for "the same labour rights" for its members as other workers, criticising the Socialist government for wanting to get rid of it.

Strike-hit Ryanair announces deal with Irish union

By AFP

London - Ryanair on Thursday said it had "reached agreement" with an Irish union representing pilots, in a move that could end the cancellation of flights across Europe because of strikes.

Poland speeds changes to Supreme Court amid EU row

By AFP

Warsaw - Poland adopted legislation Friday aimed at speeding up the process of replacing the country's disputed Supreme Court chief justice who has refused to step down under a retirement law the EU has called a threat to judicial independence.

Canadian tariffs set to kick in on Sunday as trade war heats up

By Karen Graham

Ottawa - On Sunday, Canada's $16.6-billion worth of retaliatory tariffs on dozens of U.S. products is set to kick in - the country's answer to the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration. But this simmering trade war will affect all of us.

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