Ideas about joint ITUC-ETUC action on wage increase were discussed with Esther Lynch, ETUC confederal secretary in a view of the “End Corporate Greed – Europe Needs a Pay Rise” forum, with particular focus on East-West wage gap, role of collective bargaining in achieving decent wages, pressure by bogus self-employment spread.
Furthermore, the programme for the PERC Summer School was discussed, as well as initial planning for the 2018, with a proposal to focus on “Freedoms and Democracy in Europe”, in a view of deterioration of trade union rights situation. More specifically, grave violations in Turkey and Kazakhstan were discussed. In Turkey, massive dismissals and arrests, including union activists have been implemented since the failed coup-d’etat. In Kazakhstan, the authorities dissolved ITUC affiliated Confederation of Independent Trade Unions and convicted its leaders to different terms of prison, freedom limitation and penalties.