On January 22, 2024, after more than a year of lengthy negotiations, the OGBL, the only union represented on the staff delegation of the Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER), and the LISER management signed the renewal of the collective bargaining contract (accord collectif de travail – ACT) covering some 180 employees. It should be noted that the ACT is a subordinate contract to the Framework Agreement for Public Research Centers.

The new contract was signed for a period of 3 years (from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2026) and includes a number of notable improvements:

• an increase in the value of meal vouchers from €8.40 to €10.80 and the decoupling of meal vouchers from the collective performance bonus. Under the previous contract, the guaranteed portion of this bonus was paid in the form of meal vouchers. These two elements are now completely independent;
• a significant salary increase for PhD students, starting in January 2024 and providing for salary progression;
• a revision of the career map and the salary ranges for each career and grade, including an increase in the maximum amounts potentially achievable for all careers and the merger of the former B1 and B2 careers into a single career, in line with the principle of alignment with the most advantageous range;
• a one-off signing bonus in the form of an additional half-day’s leave for 2024 and the possibility of using this half-day in subsequent years, depending on the achievement of LISER’s collective performance targets;
• alignment with the guaranteed qualified minimum social wage after 10 years of service for employees in grade 1 of C careers (research support);
• communicating the salary scale in job advertisements;
• ensuring the principle of non-discrimination in a gender-sensitive manner in all commissions and bodies of the Center;
• textual clarifications on teleworking, flexitime rules and staff career and classification committees;
• the introduction of an article on respect for the right to disconnect;
• an increase in the budget previously allocated to sustainable mobility (M-Pass) from 5,000 euros to 6,000 euros per year, in favor of a new policy of soft mobility and well-being at work, with concrete actions and measures.

The OGBL would like to thank the LISER staff for their support during the negotiations.

Press release from the Higher Education and Research Department of the Education and Science Syndicate (SEW) of the OGBL, January 23, 2024