On March 9, 2023, the Chamber of Deputies voted in favor of a new law to protect employees against moral harassment in the workplace.

The introduction of a legal framework responds to a long-standing demand by the OGBL, which had already signed an interprofessional agreement on harassment and violence at work with the LCGB and the UEL in 2009 to fill a certain legal vacuum. The OGBL welcomes the government’s initiative to go beyond this interprofessional agreement and introduce a legal framework to combat moral harassment at work. Although there are still some obvious gaps in the text, a number of new provisions strengthen the protection of victims and place the employer at the centre of the system.

A text that includes the ITM

In addition to the elements inspired by the interprofessional agreement between unions and employers on the measures to be taken by the employer when he has been informed of a case of moral harassment in his company, the new law now provides for the involvement of the Inspectorate of Labor and Mines (ITM) in the process. Indeed, if the employee feels that the moral harassment persists after the implementation of measures, or if the employer fails to take adequate measures, the employee (or the staff delegation with the employee’s consent) can then refer the matter to the ITM.

The law stipulates that the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator (or other employees and the employer or his representative, if applicable) must be heard by the ITM, which must then send a full report to the employer within 45 days of receiving the file. If the ITM decides that acts of moral harassment have occurred, the employer is ordered to take the necessary measures to immediately stop such acts, failing which the ITM is entitled to impose an administrative fine on the employer.

A broad definition of time and place

The new law also provides a fairly broad definition of moral harassment in the context of employment relations. The temporal dimension implies a repetition or systematization of acts, without defining a precise period of time. The spatial dimension, on the other hand, goes beyond the physical place of work. Thus, travel or business trips, off-site training, or communication during or outside of working hours are all part of the working relationship. The short definition of moral harassment should now be applied to a variety of situations without excluding any.

Protection for victims and a supportive role for employee representatives

The law also stipulates that the employee representative must provide support and advice to the victim. For their part, employees who consider themselves victims can now request that their employment contract be terminated without notice and without consequences for serious misconduct, and can even be awarded damages in certain cases.

Loopholes in the law that could have been avoided by prior consultation with the OGBL

When the draft law was presented in July 2021, the OGBL expressed its regret that it had not been consulted beforehand, as the leading syndicate in the country and a signatory to the existing interprofessional agreement on harassment and violence at work.

While the OGBL welcomes the government’s initiative to introduce a real legal framework to protect victims of moral harassment in the workplace, it considers that the law does not go far enough in many respects. For example, the ITM should have more resources and appropriate skills to carry out its tasks properly, which the law does not explicitly provide for. Other organizations, such as occupational medicine, could be mobilized to address this issue.

Second, the law does not address the fundamental issue of the burden of proof, which remains with the victim. As we all know, in practice it is still very difficult for a victim of harassment to prove it. The aspect of protection against dismissal should also be extended to witnesses, as they are crucial in cases of harassment and should be protected as well as the victims. Furthermore, fines for employers who don’t comply with their obligations to take the necessary measures to stop harassment are hardly dissuasive. The role of staff representatives is not sufficiently emphasized. And the support and assistance provided by representative syndicates to alleged victims is completely absent from the text. The principle of discretion, which is necessary to protect the dignity and privacy of those concerned, is not sufficiently taken into account.

Finally, what about the interprofessional agreement signed by the social partners in 2009, which also covers the issue of violence in the workplace, an issue that has been completely forgotten in the law? A priori, this agreement remains in force, at least for the aspects not covered by the new law. In practice, however, this could lead to legal uncertainty.

In conclusion, and in response to these various problems, the OGBL insists on being consulted before the next revision of the law, which is certainly a step forward but remains incomplete.

Manon Meiresonne, Deputy Central Secretary

The OGBL National Committee met on March 28th at the Maison du peuple in Esch-sur-Alzette. First, it reviewed the tripartite agreement reached last March. “It is a good tripartite agreement (…) It provides considerable support for the purchasing power of households”, stressed the OGBL President.

The measures adopted in this agreement, as well as in the agreement of September 2022, have also contributed to keeping inflation under control. In this context, it is interesting to note that Luxembourg currently has the lowest inflation rate in Europe, followed by Belgium – one of the few other countries, along with Luxembourg, to have a wage indexation system. These figures show once again that the thesis defended by all anti-union circles that the index itself feeds inflation, the so-called “auto-ignition effect”, remains a pure myth.

In response to some of the criticisms leveled at the measures adopted under this tripartite agreement – their alleged lack of social orientation – the National Committee also wished to make a number of clarifications. First, it should be remembered that the crisis of purchasing power is currently reaching the middle classes, so it was important to ensure that not only low-income households but also middle-income households were supported.

Second, the energy price cap is also a social measure. Although high-income earners also benefit from the energy price cap, the main beneficiaries are still low and middle-income earners, who on average spend a much higher proportion of their income on energy costs.

The increase in the tax credit for notarial deeds for home purchases (“bëllegen Akt”), which is mainly aimed at young working people, also has a social dimension in itself, given the population it targets.

Finally, with regard to the adjustment of the tax scale in line with inflation, which was the OGBL’s main demand in the tripartite negotiations and which was partially accepted in the agreement, the National Committee would like to point out that, although high earners also benefit from this, it is once again the small and medium earners who are the main beneficiaries, since they are the main victims of the “cold progression” resulting from the failure to adjust the scale in line with inflation.

The OGBL also sought to contextualize its demand that the tax scale be brought in line with inflation by pointing out that the OGBL also has a much wider range of demands in the area of taxation. However, given that the government had already made it clear for some time that it would not be undertaking any further major tax reforms during this legislature, the OGBL decided to focus on this single demand, which had become more than urgent given the current pressures on household purchasing power.

In fact, if nothing had been done, households would have suffered no less than 8 tax increases between 2017 and the end of 2023. For a gross salary of 5,000 euros – the income level currently most affected by the cold progression – this would have amounted to a tax increase of around 2,000 euros per year over this period. “It was urgent to do something at this level to increase the purchasing power of households. We didn’t get everything. But it’s a very important symbolic first step. And we’re still calling for full adjustment,” said Nora Back. This breakthrough is all the more important given that a week before the tripartite meeting, the government was still strongly opposed to the idea, calling such a measure “irresponsible” and “financial hara-kiri”.

The OGBL’s other tax-related demands have not gone away. On the contrary. Luxembourg’s tax policy remains profoundly unfair and this trend must be reversed. The OGBL intends to make its demands clear to the political parties before the national elections in October 2023.

On the tax front, the OGBL is calling for the full adjustment of the tax scale to inflation, the exemption of the social minimum wage from taxation, the broadening of the tax scale so that the tax burden rises more slowly with income, and the creation of additional tax brackets for the highest incomes.

But the OGBL also points out another flagrant injustice: income from capital is scandalously taxed less than income from work. Here, too, it’s time to act.

Another priority of the OGBL in the run-up to the national elections in October is the minimum social wage, which must be structurally increased. In recent years, the minimum wage has risen by a modest 0.9%, above the regular adjustment to general wage trends, while the OGBL has been calling for a 10% increase for years.

Reform of the Collective Bargaining Law is another of the OGBL’s key demands to the political parties in the run-up to the elections. The law is no longer adapted to the economic reality of the country. The coalition program provided for such a reform, but unfortunately it was not implemented. Everything remains to be done.

Not surprisingly, the OGBL also intends to keep a close eye on how the parties position themselves with regard to the index, which remains a red line for the OGBL. Finally, the reduction of working hours and the defense and even improvement of our pension system are two of the OGBL’s other key demands in the run-up to the general elections.

The OGBL’s May 1 speech is expected to detail its demands.

>> A new tripartite agreement that strengthens purchasing power and guarantees the index

 

 

Anyone who knows the OGBL knows that every year at this time the preparations for May 1st are in full swing. The importance and significance of this holiday is well known to all our readers.

But in a super election year, with politicians holding campaign rallies all the time and a full calendar of festivals and concerts, our union holiday is in danger of being drowned out. Although we’ll be celebrating together again in Neumünster Abbey, as we have for over 15 years, our May Day is much more than just a concert. And even though this year some politicians will join us for a toast, our Labor Day is much more than just a party.

That’s why it’s important for us to remember that this very special day every year pays tribute to the men and women who have fought for great social achievements since the beginning of the trade union movement. On

May Day is celebrated, as it should be. But we don’t just celebrate trade union victories of the past! Celebrating past gains means defending and building on them. That’s why May Day is also a day of forward-looking political demands.

With this in mind, the OGBL has once again decided to combine its cultural celebrations with its political May Day. Everything will take place on the same day. In the morning, we’ll gather for the May Day speech before the Fête du Travail et des Cultures takes over. Every year, many people come here to celebrate, to listen to concerts, to participate in workshops and to see shows. Friends and families, militants and OGBL members come together to share the essence of a syndicate: social cohesion.

In the morning, we’ll gather for the May Day speech before the Fête du Travail et des Cultures.

As already mentioned, this year, a few months before the national elections, it is particularly important for the OGBL to address its main demands to the political parties.

For more tax justice. For an increase in the social minimum wage. For a reduction in working hours with full pay. For the improvement of our pension system. And, of course, for the defense of the index.

These and many other demands must be made on May 1st and beyond for a future with greater social justice.

It is precisely in times of economic uncertainty, multiple crises and rising inflation that the collective power of workers is under attack. This is currently the case in our neighboring countries, where attempts are being made to weaken the trade union movement. It is clear that only solidarity within the syndicate can repel all attacks.

In these times of fear-mongering rhetoric and constant attacks on our wages and benefits, we need strong syndicates more than ever. That’s why we need to be out in force on May 1, 2023.

The pre-election period is also an opportunity to take political stock. Politics cannot claim to have been successful if social inequalities are exacerbated rather than reduced.

We don’t need false promises, we need strong action. May Day is also an opportunity to hold up a mirror to the government and redefine political priorities. That’s why we will be together on May Day 2023.

Only together will we be strong. For our future.

Long live international solidarity, long live the free trade union movement and long live May Day!

Nora Back, OGBL President

All salaries and pensions will increase by 2.5% on April 1, 2023. The new index has arrived… but it was a difficult birth, to say the least.

We had to wait no less than nine months for this index tranche to finally reach our wallets. While this kind of delay may be perfectly normal for a pregnancy, it’s far less so when it comes to the index…

Triggered and actually due on July 1, 2022, the payment of this index tranche was postponed to April 2023 due to the government’s decision in March 2022 to massively manipulate the index, in particular by providing for a minimum 12-month delay between the payment of two index tranches, regardless of the level of inflation.

At the time, only the OGBL opposed this manipulation of the index, and only the OGBL refused to sign the March 2022 tripartite agreement that included this measure, putting the index in great danger.

Attacked from all sides, the OGBL nevertheless maintained its red line: touching the index was out of the question! Thousands of OGBL delegates and militants mobilized and took to the streets. All OGBL structures fought relentlessly to defend this pillar of the Luxembourg social model.

And the fight paid off: a few months later, at a new tripartite meeting, it was decided, this time with the OGBL, to restore the normal operation of the index. Had it not been for the opposition of the OGBL and the normalization of the index, the index tranche  paid last February, for example, would have been postponed, even for 14 months. In fact, it was initially planned that this tranche would not be paid until April 1, 2024, maintaining the logic of 12 months between two tranches.

Unfortunately, the postponement of the index tranche due in principle last July was maintained by the government and this tranche will finally be paid in April 2023. It should be noted, however, that the payment of this tranche will put an end to the manipulation of the index that began in March 2022.

Only the OGBL has defended the index.

And it will continue to do so as often as necessary.

Everyone talks about the index.

We defend it.

Some employees and pensioners may be in for a nasty surprise when they receive their April salary or pension statement. Despite the payment of a new index tranche, the net amount of their salary or pension could be lower than that of the previous month.

This is because the degressive energy tax credit introduced by the government last year will no longer apply from April. This tax credit was introduced by the “tripartite” agreement of March 2022 – which, it should be remembered, was not signed by the OGBL – to “compensate”, so to speak, for the postponement of the index tranche from July 1, 2022 to April 1, 2023, but also for the increase in the CO2 tax for the lowest salary categories. The OGBL has always preferred structural measures, such as adjusting the tax scale in line with inflation or increasing, extending and regularly adjusting the cost-of-living allowance, to such temporary measures.

In the absence of other measures, it now hopes that the new “economic tax credit” (crédit d’impôt conjoncture) decided at the last tripartite meeting to compensate for the non-adjustment of the tax scale, which will be applied retroactively from January 1, 2023, will soon be approved by the Chamber of Deputies and paid to the beneficiaries. Households really need it.

Published by OGBL on April 4th, 2023