The social dialogue in Luxembourg has many facets.

At the institutional and national level, the elections for the Chamber of Employees are crucial to ensure the representation of the OGBL in the CSL itself, but also in the institutions and jurisdictions of social security and labor law (labor tribunals, National Health Fund, National Pension Fund, etc.), as well as to ensure the general national representativeness of the OGBL for its right to negotiate collective agreements.

These elections for the CSL are currently underway, and by now all voters should have received their ballots by post to elect our representatives. If you haven’t already done so, please fill it out, vote for List 2, and return it by post.

The second important aspect of social dialogue is at sectoral and company level. Social dialogue at this level is crucial for employees. At company level, staff delegates defend workers’ social achievements on a daily basis and talk to management to assert workers’ rights.

This is trade union work par excellence, and I would like to personally thank all those who do this work on the ground every day, bringing trade union ideals and solidarity to life in the workplace.

In a power relationship that is by definition unfavorable to the employee in his interaction with the employer, the staff delegate is his/her natural ally, since he/she represents the collective. And the delegate’s work is all the more effective if he or she can rely on his or her union, the OGBL, which has demonstrated its independence and combativeness in defending the interests of employees in every company in the country, regardless of its size or economic weight!

In order to negotiate with the employer on equal terms, we need a strong union in the company. We must oppose any reduction in the weight of unions in collective negotiations, as proposed in the government’s program. Without the involvement of the unions, discussions on working time will lead to a one-sided flexibilization of work hours.

It is already apparent that problems related to working conditions and the lack of workers’ participation in the organization of their working time are on the rise.

The Chamber of Employees has just published its new survey on working conditions in companies, which is both scientific and representative of the Luxembourg working world: the general trend is clear and worrying: over the last 10 years, well-being at work has deteriorated.

Work intensity, autonomy at work, problems reconciling family and professional life, the risk of burnout and suffering from depression – all the indicators are in the red.

In order to reverse these trends, we need to counter the relentless trend towards greater unilateral flexibility in favor of companies.

We need strong delegations backed by a strong union to talk to management.

So, on March 12, vote again for the OGBL! Vote list 2!