Human Times

European Edition

30th January 2026

THE HOT STORY

Germans' 'lifestyle part-time' work faces scrutiny

The economic wing of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Mittelstands- und Wirtschaftsunion (MIT), has criticised what it calls "lifestyle part-time" - a reference to "not people who need to reduce their hours to take care of children, or sick relatives or pursue education. It's about people who just want more free time," MIT spokeswoman Juliane Berndt explained to Deutsche Welle. "With a four-day week and an exaggerated work-life balance, prosperity cannot be maintained," Merz said in early January. He also complained that Germans call in sick for work too often, and suffer from a lack of work ethic.

Deutsche Welle (EN)

LEGAL

EU plans to extend 90-day rule for some non-EU workers

The European Commission is to look into allowing certain non-EU professionals to stay in the EU beyond the current 90/180-day rule. “The Commission will work closely with Member States to identify pragmatic solutions to accommodate extended short stays for selected categories of third-country nationals, ensuring a security and economic benefit for the Union, as well as legal clarity for travellers," the commission outlined in its strategy to allow longer short-stay Schengen visas for certain professional categories.

The Local

Court tells Netherlands to help Caribbean island adapt to climate change risks

A court in the Netherlands has ruled that binding greenhouse gas emissions targets to reach net zero by 2050 must be set by the government to protect the Dutch-Caribbean island of Bonaire, and has ordered the state to develop a proper climate adaptation plan for the island. “This is an incredible victory for the people in Bonaire,” said Eefje de Kroon, a climate justice expert at Greenpeace Nederlands. “Not only has the court established that people from Bonaire are being discriminated against because of the climate crisis but also the Dutch government needs to do much more to protect them.” The court ruled that the Dutch government was breaching articles 8 and 14 of the European convention on human rights, which protect the right to respect for private and family life and prohibit discrimination.

TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT

Plans to train up to 10 million Britons in AI skills

UK technology secretary Liz Kendall has announced plans to train up to 10m Britons in AI skills by 2030. She acknowledged that AI will lead to job losses, but stressed that new jobs will emerge. Kendall aims to make Britain the fastest AI adopter in the G7 and highlighted the need for a workforce ready for change. She described the initiative as the largest upskilling effort since the Open University. Meanwhile, the government has recruited a Meta-funded team of artificial intelligence experts who will spend the next year developing open-source tools to improve how authorities maintain transport networks, manage public safety, and make decisions on national security. The specialists' expertise spans areas including computer vision, applied machine learning, and robotics-driven imaging.

Reuters

The Guardian

STRATEGY

Mercedes declined Lutnick's bid to move to US

Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Kaellenius has told German news site The Pioneer that he turned down an offer tabled by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick early last year to move the German carmaker's headquarters to the United States. Kaellenius said that, while the automaker was global and would invest in the U.S., it could not be "uprooted."

Reuters

WORKFORCE

Bangladeshi workers tricked into fighting on Russia's frontline

An Associated Press investigation has found that many Bangladeshi workers who were lured to Russia under the false promise of civilian work were coerced into combat roles in Ukraine. AP spoke with three Bangladeshi men who escaped from the Russian military, who said that after arriving in Moscow they were told to sign Russian documents that turned out to be military contracts.

Yahoo News Australia

TECHNOLOGY

AI will not lead to mass layoffs, says head of India’s largest IT services company

Tata Consultancy Services boss K Krithivasan has dismissed fears that AI will upend the $300bn outsourcing industry and precipitate mass lay-offs, saying “AI is not going to create lay-offs by itself.”

Financial Times

REMUNERATION

Netherlands moves to abolish bonus caps for banking and fintech sectors

The Dutch parliament's lower house has approved a plan to eliminate bonus restrictions for most employees in the financial sector, signalling a shift from regulations the industry has long criticised. While a majority in the House of Representatives voted in favour, the cap would still apply to senior staff deemed to be material risk takers. This change now awaits a further vote in parliament and approval from the Senate.

Bloomberg

CORPORATE

Capgemini under fire in France for ICE contract

France's finance minister, Roland Lescure, has called on Capgemini to clarify its contract with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) amid growing concerns over the agency's actions. Capgemini Government Solutions has signed a contract for "skip tracing services" to assist ICE in locating deportees. Lescure said: "I urge Capgemini to shed light . . . on its activities." The scrutiny follows incidents involving ICE officers that have raised international concerns, including the agency's involvement in the US security team for the upcoming Winter Olympics in Italy. Capgemini chief executive Aiman Ezzat noted that the US branch of the firm acted independently on the contract.

LE Monde

Financial Times

Glencore tops survey of European M&A targets

M&A experts have identified Glencore as the top potential takeover target for 2026. Glencore is in talks with Rio Tinto Group to create the world’s biggest mining company. Other top potential takeover targets, according to an informal Bloomberg survey of 30 risk-arbitrage desks, traders and analysts, include French biotech Abivax, BP, Delivery Hero, EasyJet and Great Portland Estates.

Bloomberg

ECONOMY

Irish consumer sentiment rises to nine-month high

Irish consumer sentiment has risen to a nine-month high of 64.7 in January, up from 61.2 in December, according to the Credit Union Consumer Sentiment Survey. However, the index remains significantly below its long-term average of 83.5, with all five survey components showing more negative than positive responses and lagging behind year-ago levels. Survey authors suggest consumers may be seeing early signs of easing inflation, though sentiment remains cautious due to ongoing cost-of-living pressures.

Reuters

INTERNATIONAL

Citi seeks to move harassment claim against top executive to arbitration

Citigroup has rejected claims by former managing director Julia Carreon, who sued the bank over alleged sexual harassment by wealth management chief Andy Sieg. The bank’s complaint alleged Carreon lodged the sexual harassment allegations to avoid requirements that otherwise would have necessitated the employment dispute to be handled through arbitration. "Citi's retaliatory filing of a lawsuit against Ms. Carreon after she sued the firm for gender and racial discrimination speaks eloquently to the bullying and intimidation tactics Wall Street firms routinely employ against women or people of colour who have the courage to seek reform," Carreon's lawyer Linda Friedman said.

Financial Times

Reuters

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