Minimum Wage: Unions attack AG opinion

ETUC challenges Advocate General's opinion on Adequate Minimum Wages Directive, arguing for its legality and importance in promoting collective bargaining.

Key points: The ETUC is challenging Advocate General's opinion on Adequate Minimum Wages Directive, especially regarding Article 4 on promoting collective bargaining. Article 4 requires governments to “promote” collective bargaining when collective bargaining coverage falls below 80% of the workforce. 

Why this matters: In our view, the unions over interpret this Article as instructing governments to take steps to bring collective bargaining coverage up to 80%, particularly through putting sectoral bargaining arrangements in place. We see little evidence of any desire on the part of governments across Europe to interpret the Directive in this way. Nor do we see a willingness on the part of employers to engage in sectoral bargaining arrangements where such arrangements do not already exist

What might happen next: The Court of Justice of the European Union will make a final decision on the legality of the directive. HOWEVER. even if the CJEU rejects the opinion of the AG and endorses the Directive, the unions will find that it does not deliver as they thought it would deliver. 

See the ETUC counter-opinion and the executive summary here.