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European Edition
5th May 2021

THE HOT STORY

Increasing complaints among Dutch staff being denied holiday pay

NL Times reports on a recent rise in the number of complaints from employees in the Netherlands who are being denied their legally guaranteed holiday allowance. Workers say they have already been told they will not receive the allowance because their employers are contending with financial difficulties amid the pandemic, according to complaints received by legal insurance provider DAS. Holiday pay equivalent to at least 8% of gross salary for the past year is usually distributed in May. Hans Biesheuvel, chair of employer organisation ONL, says company executives should look for alternative ways to approach holiday pay, such as delayed compensation. "The problem is even bigger than last year. Now reserves are running out, especially in the sectors hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis, such as the catering industry, small shops and events sectors. We advise entrepreneurs to even divide the holiday pay over several months if necessary," he says.

NL Times

STRATEGY

Norwegian cuts 1,200 jobs in Spain

Norwegian is to cut 85% of its staff in Spain. Around 1,200 cabin crew will lose their jobs as part of the airline's restructuring. Alfons Claver, the carrier's communications manager in Spain, confirmed the plans to Dagens Næringsliv (DN). “This does not only apply to Spain. With different timing and different legal systems and local dynamics, the downsizing has already taken place in countries where we used to operate,” he said. Three of Norwegian's five bases in Spain will be cut, but the low-cost airline will retain bases in Malaga and Alicante. The USO union described the cuts as “brutal.”

Norway Today

Brexit hit to British banks ‘still not fully felt’

Katharine Braddick, head of financial services at the UK Treasury, says that while the hit to the City of London from Brexit has been less severe than initially predicted “there is still a lot in play.” Banks in London continue to face pressure from the European Central Bank to relocate staff and activities to the EU. "There is quite a lot of pressure to move quite a lot quite quickly. That is very much at the sharp end of where we are seeing the new border arise," said Ms Braddick.

Reuters

REMOTE WORKING

Ericsson to launch subscription service for remote working

Swedish telecom equipment company Ericsson is launching a subscription service for remote working in North America. The service would allow employees of small businesses to start working remotely in minutes with access to licensed apps, cloud storage and security tools. Applications can be purchased from a marketplace, the platform accessed from any device, and a dedicated IT technician would not be needed to set up the system. Åsa Tamsons, Ericsson’s head of business area technologies and new businesses, noted that customers can decide which employees can get access to certain apps or capabilities.

Reuters

WORKFORCE

UK government taskforce urges permanent job flexibility for all workers

The UK government’s Flexible Working Taskforce says flexible working should be a right for all UK employees, regardless of the type of contract they are on. Taskforce member Sue Coe, senior equality officer at the TUC, said: “Flexible working should be a day one right that’s available to everyone. Workers shouldn’t have to go cap in hand to their managers to ask for it.” Peter Cheese, co-chair of the taskforce and chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), said guidance being drawn up by the taskforce offers “an opportunity to shift ways of working, which have barely changed for generations.” A CIPD poll has seen more than 60% of employers say they plan to introduce or expand the use of hybrid working, while over 70% said homeworking had no detrimental impact on productivity in the pandemic. The poll also found that 44% of employees have not worked from home at all during the pandemic as their jobs do not allow it.

The Guardian

The i

Goldman to bring US and UK bankers back to the office in June

Goldman Sachs has told its bankers in the US and UK that they should be ready to return to the office next month in a move that makes the New York lender one of Wall Street’s first major banks to recall employees. “We know from experience that our culture of collaboration, innovation and apprenticeship thrives when our people come together, and we look forward to having more of our colleagues back in the office so that they can experience that once again on a regular basis,” said a staff memo signed by the bank’s three most senior executives, including chief executive David Solomon. The message said that, “in the US, we ask those who have not yet done so to make plans to be in a position to return to the office by Monday, June 14.” The bank wants its British employees to be prepared to return to physical locations by June 21.

CNBC

Financial Times

Bloomberg

DIVERSITY

Women central bankers want action on ‘hidden barriers’ to equality

Isabel Schnabel and Margarita Delgado, two of Europe’s most senior female central bankers, say central banks need a strategy to hire and promote more women and to improve decision-making.

Financial Times

CORPORATE

Swiss officials push back at Biden 'tax haven' jibe

Swiss authorities are taking issue with U.S. President Joe Biden's comment that many companies use Switzerland, and two other territories, as tax havens. The Swiss Federal Department of Finance said such a claim was “inappropriate and completely out of date.” The pushback, reported in Swiss media, came after Mr Biden said in a speech to Congress that “a lot of companies . . . evade taxes through tax havens in Switzerland and Bermuda and the Cayman Islands” — part of his call for the global rich and corporations to pay their fair share of tax. Isabelle Roesch of the Swiss finance department said in an email: “Switzerland meets all international standards in tax matters.”

Euronews

US News and World Report

Veolia posts higher Q1 profits French utility

French utility group Veolia, which last month agreed a €13bn ($15.6bn) merger with rival Suez, has reported higher first quarter earnings and maintained its 2021 financial outlook. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the first quarter ending March 31st were €1.078bn, up from €970m a year earlier. Revenues grew 2% from last year to €6.81bn; net income surged by 58.7% to €186m. Veolia Chairman and CEO Antoine Frerot said of the recent deal with Suez: “On April 11th, we signed an agreement to purchase Suez group and to create the undisputed world champion of ecological transformation.” Suez had rebuffed the advances of Veolia since its larger rival bought a stake in the firm last October.

Reuters

INTERNATIONAL

BlackRock strikes aggressive stance on ESG proxy votes

BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, is increasing its support for shareholder-led environmental, social and governance (ESG) proposals. For the roughly 170 ESG shareholder proposals it voted on during the first half of the proxy year, BlackRock backed 91% of environmental proposals, 23% of social proposals and 26% of corporate governance proposals. “BlackRock has strongly signaled that quiet diplomacy is not the only tool in its toolbox,” said Rich Fields, a partner at law firm King & Spalding who focuses on corporate governance issues. “We expect more votes for shareholder proposals and against directors in this and future years.” BlackRock’s initiatives are part of a broader push by Wall Street—institutional investors, money managers and banks—to wield influence through their investments. The FT nevertheless reports this morning that BlackRock has been accused of inconsistency in its approach to sustainable investing over its backing of a shareholder protest against Procter & Gamble’s sourcing of palm oil.

Financial Times

Wall Street Journal

Restaurants in Israel are low on staff

Eateries in Israel which were forced to shut down or shift to takeout-only during pandemic lockdowns, and which had to put their workers on unpaid leave or else dismiss them, are now finding it hard to get them back as the country emerges from the crisis following its world-leading vaccination campaign. The Employment Service Bureau has warned that workers aged 34 and under were choosing not to return to the employment market even amid surging demand for manpower in sectors they would typically work in, such as the hospitality sector. The extension of unemployment benefits until the end of June has transformed the payments from a “safety net” into a “barrier” preventing workers from returning to the workforce, Rami Garor, the head of Israel's Employment Service Bureau, said.

The Times of Israel

Big Four auditors squeezed between US and China

The FT reports on the long-running stalemate between China and overseas regulators over access to companies’ financial records. The Big Four auditors are trapped between antagonising Beijing or incurring penalties elsewhere.

Financial Times

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