In this open letter civil society organisations and workers' representatives, including AK EUROPA, call on Commissioners, and WTO-Ambassadors, not to pressure WTO members to adopt the leaked TRIPS-Waiver proposal, which would continue to block the global lifting on barriers for production rights for vaccines and drugs against Covid-19. The text contains problematic provisions that could undermine its effectiveness in contributing to a pandemic response and risks further aggravating inequities in access to vaccines.

One phenomenon of the modern world of work is the increase in new, mostly precarious forms of employment that neither correspond to traditional full-time employment protected by labour and social law nor can be qualified as traditional self-employment.

Women are particularly affected by negative consequences of crises. The past two years of the pandemic resulted in an increase of physical and psychological violence against women in particular. As part of the EU Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025, the Commission has now presented a proposal to combat violence against women.

For ten years, the Women on Boards Directive was pending. Now, it might be possible that the proposal for a directive from 2012, which was blocked in the Council, could finally achieve the necessary majority. That binding quotas are an effective means to increase the share of women in leadership positions, has been confirmed once again this year by the Women.Management.Report, presented by the Chamber of Labour on 7 March 2022.

The Commission’s new guidelines for a just transition towards climate neutrality call on Member States to take action. People must be at the centre of environmental change – nobody shall be left behind. Early March 2022, the European Trade Union Institute organised an event focussing on the question what challenges the EU is facing in order to make the eco-social paradigm change a global success.

After an eight months’ delay, it finally happened on 23 February 2022: the EU Commission presented its proposal for an EU supply chain law. AK and ÖGB have been requesting binding rules for more corporate responsibility along supply chains for a long time. The Commission’s proposal got a mixed response, but made one thing clear: EU Parliament and Member States are urgently required to improve the proposal to make sure that the EU supply chain law reaches its full potential.

Many activities in Brussels that take place around International Women’s Day are focussing on gender equality. As demonstrated by the European Commission’s commitment to increase the number of women on corporate boards and income transparency, equal opportunity policy tops the Commission President’s list of priorities.

Carried out in 14 states, including Austria, a new survey by the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) once more confirms that low earning opportunities are accompanied by high fluctuation and short, fragmented working periods of online and platform workers at the same time. On 17 February 2022, this issue took centre stage at a large ETUI conference.

The EU Commission has made 2022 the European Year of Youth in order to promote engagement and participation of the European youth to build a “better future that is greener, more inclusive and digital.” However, despite the Commission's lofty language, concrete actions are thus far largely lacking.

For years, workers organisations, including AK, have been calling for a legal framework for workers employed via online platforms to ensure minimum standards of legal and social protection. Therefore, AK welcomes that the Commission has presented a directive proposal to improve working conditions in platform work.