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☆ Teleperformance full-year revenue tops guidance
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 16 (Reuters) - French office services and call centre company Teleperformance (TEPRF.PA) posted full-year revenue slightly above its previous guidance on Thursday, helped by a drive towards digitalisation among clients. The company posted 12.5% like-for-like revenue growth to 8.15 billion euros ($8.7 billion), slightly above its 12% growth estimate provided in November. Teleperformance came under pressure in Colombia last November over work practices in its content moderation business. Teleperformance targets recurring organic or self-generated growth of about 10.0% and an EBITA margin increase of 20 basis points in 2023. It had also confirmed its 2025 financial targets of at least 10 billion euros in revenue and an EBITA margin of 16%.

☆ France's Macron faces third round of pension reform strikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] A member of CFDT labour union prepares placards on the eve of the third day of national strike and protests in France against French government's pension reform plan, in Nice, France, February 6, 2023. "Our pension system is structurally in deficit," Labour Minister Olivier Dussopt told parliament on Monday afternoon as lawmakers began debating the bill. The government says the reform will allow gross savings of over 17 billion euros ($18 billion) per year by 2030. Conservative opponents, whose support Macron needs for a working majority in the National Assembly, want concessions for those who start working young. "The reform will never be accepted if the most wealthy don't contribute," former Socialist president Francois Hollande told BFM TV.

☆ Thousands of Danes protest cancelling of public holiday
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( Johannes Birkebaek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] People take part in a protest outside of Danish Parliament building in Copenhagen, Denmark, February 5, 2023. REUTERS/Johannes BirkebaekCOPENHAGEN, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Thousands of people gathered in Copenhagen on Sunday to protest a bill put forward by the government to scrap a public holiday to help finance increased defence spending. Unions organising the protest estimated at least 50,000 people took part, which would make it Denmark's biggest demonstration in more than a decade. The government has proposed moving forward by three years to 2030 a goal of meeting a NATO defence spending target of 2% of GDP. It says most of the extra 4.5 billion Danish crowns ($654 million) needed to meet the target could be covered by the higher tax revenues it anticipates from abolishing the holiday.

HONG KONG, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Sixteen Hong Kong pro-democracy figures face trial on Monday, more than two years after their arrest, in what some observers say is a landmark case for the city's judicial independence under a national security law imposed by Beijing. Thirteen of those arrested were granted bail in 2021, while the other 34 - including 10 who pleaded not guilty - have been in pre-trial custody on national security grounds. Western governments have criticised the 2020 national security law as a tool to crush dissent in the former British colony. The 31 who pleaded guilty, including former law professor Benny Tai and activist Joshua Wong, will be sentenced after the trial. The case will be heard by three High Court judges designated under the national security law: Andrew Chan, Alex Lee and Johnny Chan.

☆ Spanish court rules Amazon 'Flex' couriers were falsely self-employed
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Feb 3 (Reuters) - A Spanish court has ruled that Amazon (AMZN.O) must compensate self-employed couriers who used their own vehicles for deliveries, a move welcomed by a labour union that has criticised worker conditions in the "gig economy". Amazon scrapped the Flex programme in Spain last year, after a 2020 Supreme Court ruling forced companies to hire freelance couriers as staff and the government introduced a pioneering law to the same effect in 2021. "Amazon is a company that is not only a logistics and transport operator, but also a courier and messenger service provider," the judge said. According to the court, Amazon made all decisions related to the service - including schedules, geographic distribution and remuneration - and used an app to direct and coordinate the couriers, who "lacked their own and autonomous business organisation". "We're happy with the result and especially happy that this Amazon Flex model no longer exists," Ranz added.

☆ France hit by new wave of strikes against Macron's pension reform
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

On the rail networks, only one in three high-speed TGV trains were operating and even fewer local and regional trains. Marching behind banners reading "No to the reform" or "We won't give up," many said they would take to the streets as often as needed for the government to back down. He sits in a chair ..., he can work until he's 70, even," she said. "We can't ask roof layers to work until 64, it's not possible." It's a real message sent to the government, saying we don't want the 64 years," Laurent Berger, who leads CFDT, France's largest union, said ahead of the Paris march.

☆ Strikes will disrupt public transport in France on Tuesday, minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Clement Beaune, France's Secretary of State for European affairs, speaks at the European Railway Summit in Saint-Denis, near Paris, France, February 21, 2022. REUTERS/Benoit TessierPARIS, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Public transport in France will be heavily disrupted on Tuesday due to labour union strikes protesting the government's planned changes to pension, Transport Minister Clement Beaune said on Sunday. "It will be a difficult, very difficult day for public transport... We expect major disruptions," Beaune said on LCI TV. Unions - including the moderate CFDT union - are united against the reform and have vowed to continue strikes and demonstrations until the government drops its plans. Macron has said he was elected on a platform to reform pensions and that without the changes France's pension system cannot remain financially viable.

☆ Britain faces new ambulance strike dates in Feb, March
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Jan 20 (Reuters) - British labour union Unite said ambulance workers would strike on a series of new dates in February and March, in the latest sign of the deepening dispute between the government and healthcare workers over pay. Unite said ambulance workers in England would walk-out on Feb. 6, Feb. 17, Feb. 20 and Feb. 22 and Mar. 20, with members in different regions holding walk-outs on different days. The new dates will add to fears for the safe running of Britain's healthcare service on Feb. 6, when other health-related unions including the Royal College of Nursing are also staging industrial action. Members from a different union, the GMB, which represents ambulance and other healthcare workers including emergency care assistants, are already planning strikes on Feb. 6, Feb. 20, March 6 and March 20.

☆ As South Korean government proposes flexible overtime rules, some fear workers may suffer
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Hyunsu Yim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

It would supersede a 2018 law that limited the work week to 52 hours - 40 hours of regular work plus 12 hours of overtime. For counting periods of a month or longer, up to 29 hours a week of overtime would be allowed, for a total of 69 work hours in one week. In a statement, the Korean Women's Associations United said "only regulations like the 52-hour workweek and pressure from labour unions can protect workers from long working hours". Extending working hours, even temporarily, affects women more than men, said Lee Min-Ah, Professor of Sociology at Chung-Ang University. Other workers say the new plan ignores a lot of the cultural and social nuances of work in South Korea.

☆ Factbox: Workers vs Macron: What to expect from Thursday's strike
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Two cabin crew unions and a union at Air France (AIRF.PA) called on employees to attend the strike. FINANCEThe banking and financial industry branch of the FO union called on employees to join the strike. The Unsa-Sante union has filed a strike notice from Jan. 10 until Feb. 1, citing the pensions reform specifically. LOGISTICSThe FO union of truck drivers and other logistics workers announced "indefinite" strike action from Jan. 19 to "win the fight" against the reform. REFINERIESThe CGT trade union announced strikes in the refinery sector, where petrol supplies were disrupted last year during weeks of industrial action.

☆ Thousands of Tunisians rally against president on revolution anniversary
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Tarek Amara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TUNIS, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Thousands of protesters marched against Tunisian President Kais Saied's seizure of near total power in central Tunis on Saturday, demanding he step down as they marked the anniversary of a key date in the 2011 revolution that brought democracy. "We were on Bourguiba in January 2011 when Saied was not present... today he is closing Bourguiba to us. We will reach it whatever the price," said Chaima Issa, an activist who took part in the 2011 revolution before the crowd pushed through the barriers. [1/5] Demonstrators hold placards during a protest against Tunisian President Kais Saied, on the anniversary of the 2011 uprising, in Tunis, Tunisia January 14, 2023. However, Saied unilaterally changed the official anniversary date and has said he regards Jan. 14 as a moment when the revolution went astray.

☆ Dialogue not over, French PM says as workers protest pension reform
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Bridges between President Emmanuel Macron's government and labour unions are not burned despite nationwide strike plans, the French prime minister said on Saturday as her government battles to tame public anger over an unpopular pensions reform. Elisabeth Borne earlier this week broke the news to the French that they will have to work two years longer, to age 64, before receiving the state pension, if the reform - one of Macron's main political promises - is adopted by parliament. "My objective today is to convince the French people that we have paid attention to all the particular hardships, that this reform is fair and that it enables social progress." Borne responded: "I hear all those who are calling the reform brutal, I think what would be brutal is for our country to not have a pay-as-you-go pension system any more". She repeated the government's mantra that the reform was needed to keep finances in balance.

☆ French refinery, metro strikes loom in clash over pension reform
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Blandine Henault | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Protestors and French CGT labour union workers attend a demonstration as part of a nationwide day of strike and protests to push for government measures to address inflation, workers' rights and pension reforms, in Paris, France, September 29, 2022. REUTERS/Gonzalo FuentesPARIS, Jan 12 (Reuters) - France's CGT trade union on Thursday called for strikes in the refinery sector against plans to make people work longer before they can retire and Paris metro unions said they would do "everything they can" to stop the pension reform. The French will have to work two years longer, to age 64, before retiring, if the reform, announced by Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne on Tuesday, is adopted by parliament. They will also need to work longer to get a full pension. "There is a right to strike, there is a right to demonstrate, but I think it is also important not to penalise the French," she said.

The most likely scenario would see the government raising the retirement age to 64 from 62 currently. But polls show pension reform is unpopular. Some 47% want no change to the retirement age and 25% want retirement to be earlier than now. Macron had to put his first pension reform bid on ice in 2020 as the government rushed to contain the COVID outbreak and save the economy. Now, although recent strike action has been limited to specific sectors, such as refineries and airlines, outrage over pension reform could easily spark broader protests.

☆ France to raise retirement age to 64, Prime Minister Borne says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PARIS, Jan 10 (Reuters) - The French government will put forward a draft law aimed at raising the regular retirement age to 64 from 62 by 2030, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said on Tuesday as she laid out its reform plans during a news conference. "I am well aware that changing our pension system raises questions and fears among the French people", Borne said, adding that is was now the government's task to rally public support for the reform. Reforming France's pensions system was one of the key promises made by President Emmanuel Macron when he was first elected in 2017. The move is likely to trigger stiff resistance from France's labour unions and the left-wing opposition bloc. Reporting by Tassilo Hummel, editing by Benoit Van OverstraetenOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ H&M agrees to pay a 500 euro bonus to 4,000 workers in January
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Swedish fashion retailer H&M (HMb.ST) agreed to pay a 500 euro ($530) bonus to some 4,000 shop workers in Spain in January, two unions said on Wednesday, after its arch-rival Inditex (ITX.MC) offered 1,000 euros to its home country shop assistants. The world's biggest fashion retailers are responding to demands from their workers for higher pay to offset soaring consumer prices. The Sweden-based fashion retailer will pay 500 euros to all its shop workers who have been employed in Spain at least since January 2022. The company will pay 250 euros to those who have worked at least six months. Soaring consumer prices have pushed unions in Spain to press sometimes reluctant employers for pay raises.

☆ Factbox: How governments are trying to ease impact of inflation
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

* Ecuador's president decreed a 6% minimum wage hike for next year. * Hungary's government and private-sector employers have agreed on a 16% minimum wage increase for next year. * Poland will cap electricity prices for small businesses, hospitals and households in 2023, and raise the minimum wage twice. * Tunisia's government in September signed a deal with a major labour union to raise public-sector pay and the minimum wage. * Turkey in July raised the minimum wage by about 30%, adding to the 50% rise seen at the end of last year.

Opposition politicians said Tunisia's lowest ever turnout stripped away any facade of democratic legitimacy for Saied's political project and called directly for his ouster. Saturday's dismal turnout strongly reinforced a perception of scant public support for his plans. As a political independent, Saied lacks the nationwide support of a party apparatus that can mobilise on his behalf. "Politics has become a luxury that we cannot afford," said Lamia Gharbi, who was queuing for bread at a Tunis bakery. Successive coalition governments have failed to find a fix for public finances that can satisfy lenders without prompting a domestic backlash.

☆ As Kuroda bows out, Bank of Japan's rising hawks eye end to unloved yield cap
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Leika Kihara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +12 min

PUBLIC DISCONTENTAfter a tumultuous year for the world's third-largest economy, Japan's central bank and its leadership face a critical moment. While ruling out the need to ditch the yield cap now, Takata recently said he saw positive developments in wage growth. "The BOJ must start worrying about the possibility of inflation accelerating more than expected," he told Reuters, adding the BOJ may abandon its yield cap as early as next year. Such a reaction was seen in March when the BOJ was forced to pledge unlimited bond buying to defend its yield cap from speculative market attacks. "That's why the BOJ won't provide advance signals and remove the yield cap in a single step."

☆ British American Tobacco closes Swiss plant, lays off 226 -paper
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

ZURICH, Dec 15 (Reuters) - British American Tobacco is to close a cigarette manufacturing plant in Switzerland next year, laying off the 226 employees working there, the Tages-Anzeiger paper and other Swiss media reported on Thursday. The Unia labour union confirmed the plant closure. The BAT plant was not immediately available to comment. Reporting by Noele Illien; Editing by Michael ShieldsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Heathrow sees minimal impact from planned Border Force strikes
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Border Force workers due to strike from Dec. 23Heathrow working to protect full flight scheduleLONDON, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Heathrow Airport said on Monday that it expected the vast majority of travellers will be unaffected by this month's planned strikes by Border Force workers. British Border Force workers plan to strike for several days from Dec. 23 at airports including Heathrow, Britain's busiest, and Gatwick due to a dispute over pay. Border Force has contingency measures to ensure other arriving passengers are cleared safely and as quickly as possible, Heathrow said. Interior minister Suella Braverman warned last Thursday that Border Force strikes may cause travel delays, adding that people should think carefully about their plans to fly abroad. It said over 55 million people had travelled through Heathrow so far this year -- nearly 70% of 2019 levels.

[1/3] Amazon Labour Union (ALU) organizer Christian Smalls speaks at an Amazon facility during a rally in Staten Island, New York City, U.S., April 24, 2022. Smalls in a lawsuit filed that year said he was targeted because of his race and his advocacy for the warehouse's largely non-white workforce. Smalls and other workers at the warehouse founded the Amazon Labor Union, which in April won the first U.S. union vote in Amazon's 27-year history. Workers at other Amazon warehouses in New York and Alabama have rejected unions. Several complaints were filed with the U.S. National Labor Relations Board claiming Amazon illegally retaliated against pro-union workers at the Staten Island warehouse, including Smalls.

SEOUL, Nov 29 (Reuters) - South Korea will offer "tailored" incentives to encourage Tesla to set up an electric vehicle gigafactory in the country and will minimise any risks posed by militant unions, President Yoon Suk-yeol told Reuters. Yoon held a video call with Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk last week and Yoon's office cited Musk as saying South Korea is among the top candidate locations for a new Tesla factory. Yoon said South Korea offers highly skilled workers and his government would ensure regulations align with international standards so that foreign firms do not face unexpected financial or regulatory hurdles. Yoon credited his government's tough response to labour union strikes this year for starting the process of establishing a rule of law in industrial relations for both management and labour. About 9,600 truckers have joined the strike organised by the truckers' union, demanding a permanent guarantee of a minimum freight rate to protect against rising and unpredictable fuel costs and overwork.

☆ Royal Mail parent slides to half-yearly loss as UK business drags
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 17 (Reuters) - Royal Mail's parent company International Distributions Services (IDSI.L) on Thursday reported a first-half loss of 57 million pounds ($67.88 million) as higher costs and disruptions arising from strikes by its postal workers put a strain on its finances. The former British postal monopoly, which recently changed the name of its holding company from Royal Mail Plc, still expects full-year adjusted operating loss for Royal Mail - its UK business - of around 350 million to 450 million pounds. It is targeting for Royal Mail to return to adjusted operating profit in full year 2024-25. Royal Mail had said it could cut up to 10,000 jobs and warned of more layoffs and even deeper financial losses if it cannot reach an agreement with the CWU. ($1 = 0.8397 pounds)Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-PhillipsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ BOJ's Kuroda vows to continue monetary easing for now, focuses on wages
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Tetsushi Kajimoto | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Kuroda said the job market is expected to tighten, particularly at service sector firms, many of which employ low-paid part timers and contract workers. The annual labour-management wage negotiations next spring will likely take into account both the tightening of the job market and rising inflation, he added. "We are at a stage where we will continue monetary easing to firmly back economic activity at present," Kuroda told a meeting with business leaders in Nagoya in central Japan. "The wages hold the key to see whether sustainable inflation take hold. In that sense, tightening of the labour market may be an encouraging signal to Governor Kuroda," Takeda said.

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