News December 1, 2024 World AIDS Day 2024: Unite to End Stigma, Inequalities, and Discrimination Despite significant advances in treatment and prevention, stigma and discrimination continue to impact the lives of those living with HIV. Lack of knowledge about the condition and how to protect oneself and others perpetuates misunderstanding and fear. This ignorance not only isolates individuals but also exacerbates poverty, hardship, and inequality—realities that many people living with HIV face daily.
News November 27, 2024 ETF Attends Court Hearing on Union Busting Case in Air Serbia Since last year, Air Serbia management has been carrying out flagrant union busting activities, notably by targeting the leading members of JSSSV. After numerous calls for international action and a petition in 2023, the ETF persists in its solidarity with the workers of the Central Union of Aeronautical Stewardesses and Stewards (JSSSV) of Serbia.
Statement November 26, 2024 ETF Calls Out Flawed and Biased European Commission Rail Pricing Study The ETF finds that this report falls short of offering a balanced or reliable assessment of the impact of rail liberalisation on service quality, workforce conditions, or public welfare. The study’s bias towards liberalisation, selective use of case studies, limited consideration of worker impact, and superficial treatment of service quality contribute to an incomplete and misleading picture of the sector. As a result, this study is considered unfit to serve as a basis for further decision and policy making.
Statement November 25, 2024 Ending Violence Against Women: A Workplace Priority Violence against women remains one of the most pervasive and devastating human rights issues globally. This reality is starkly visible in the transport sector, where workers – especially women – face high levels of violence from third parties. As we mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on 25 November, we must confront this harsh truth: violence is not just a societal issue; it is a workplace issue too.
News November 22, 2024 For fair and sustainable employment in aviation: participate in the Ghent Study v2.0 In collaboration with social partners ECA and ENAA, the ETF has actively contributed to updating the Ghent Study survey, adapting it to the increasing complexity of aircrew employment, the liberalisation of the European aviation market and the emergence of new business models, such as wet-leasing. The resulting survey is now equipped to better capture complex working-hour schemes, intricate contractual ties and mental health struggles of aircrew workers.
News November 21, 2024 Petition: Don’t lower the minimum age for truck driving in Europe! Truck driving in Europe is a very demanding profession that requires a lot of skill, concentration and responsibility. The EU should make the job more rewarding, less stressful and risky and attract more experienced drivers rather than trying to find teenagers willing to do the job for low pay and long hours. Sign the petition now!
News November 19, 2024 World Toilet Day 2024: What if you didn’t have one at your workplace? We often assume that access to clean and safe sanitation for everyone is a demand of the past in Europe. However, this fundamental human right in Europe’s transport sector is still often neglected. With the lack of sanitation or its poor quality, the transport industry is driving workers away from the industry, especially women.
Press Release November 15, 2024 EU Social Partners unveil new tools to strengthen the social dimension of the Common Fisheries Policy Yesterday, the EU Social Partners in the fisheries sector, represented by Europêche and the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF), presented at the European Parliament the results of a major initiative aimed at creating a safer, healthier, and more worker-friendly fisheries sector across Europe. The dissemination conference, hosted by MEPs Nicolás González Casares (Socialists and Democrats) and Paulo do Nascimento Cabral (European People’s Party), provided an opportunity to showcase innovative tools developed under the EU project Pillars of the Sea 3: Roadmap towards socially sustainable fishing.
Press Release November 13, 2024 Non-EU Fishers Working on EU Vessels: ETF Conference Calls for Fair Pay and Rights The ETF held an important conference today, spotlighting the working conditions and fair pay challenges faced by non-EU fishers employed on EU vessels. The event gathered a diverse group of policymakers from the EU Commission, Parliament and the ILO, experts, and industry stakeholders to address wage discrepancies and non-EU workers conditions in the sector.
Press Release November 13, 2024 European Social Partners issue urgent call to protect Mediterranean coastal fishing communities The European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF), Europêche and COGECA – European fisheries social partners- jointly adopted a resolution at their plenary meeting, urgently addressing the critical state of the Mediterranean fisheries. This decision highlights shared concerns about the situation of fisheries in the Mediterranean where coastal communities are suffering from sizeable reductions of fishing effort, and the need for sensible EU policies to support both environmental, social and economic dimensions.
News November 8, 2024 Dockers Safety Conference: “Working together. Much safer” The conference emphasised that safety is a shared responsibility and a vital investment rather than a cost. It provided a unique platform for those actively addressing safety issues within their organisations to exchange views and experiences. Employers, workers, and union leaders engaged in discussions on critical topics such as ensuring safety aboard ships, enforcing the non-seafarers’ work clause, and creating safer working conditions for lashers.
Statement November 7, 2024 ETF Statement on Fisheries and Oceans Commissioner-designate Cōstas Kadīs Hearing The ETF welcomes the Commission’s decision to separate the Fisheries and Environment portfolios, ending the unbalanced association that left fisheries as the only economic sector under the environment umbrella. This change should help ensure that fisheries are fairly represented and not disproportionately impacted compared to other sectors. The ETF looks forward to working with Commissioner Kadīs to strengthen the EU fisheries sector across all three pillars.