It has been 30 years since the OGBL last celebrated May Day in its historic stronghold of Esch. Its president,Nora Back, was proud and happy, despite the health crisis, "to be together in the street on this day, the day of work".

No discrimination against cross-border workers

She first recalled that May Day was synonymous with respect for human rights. “Like what exists in some European countries, a law must, without further delay, establish an obligation to ensure that all the trading partners and subcontractors that we have at the global level respect human rights,” Back insisted. She then quickly turned to the more than 200,000 cross-border workers in Luxembourg, whose rights must also be fully respected: “There must be no discrimination, whether at work, with social security, in matters of taxation, or with regard to family allowances, only because one is a cross-border worker."

As Back also recalled, the OGBL and the Landesverband have been at the forefront of the fight during the last year and the crisis, in particular "to prevent the health crisis from becoming a social crisis, when the economic crisis is already inevitable.” Addressing the government vis-à-vis the European plan of recovery and resilience, “All these measures must now be discussed. Together. And that is why today we are making an urgent appeal to the government, to finally take social dialogue really seriously."

The OGBL does not want an austerity policy

The threat is clear: "Social dialogue is the price to pay for social peace."

And while "inequalities are widening and widening,” Back hopes the same mistakes are not made today as in 2008. "The OGBL and the Landesverband will not accept that we fall back into a policy of austerity here in Luxembourg,” she said. On the contrary, they want to see new public investments made and the strengthening of household purchasing power. 

These investments will have to take place not just in the health sector, but also in education.

Back has also put her finger on the housing problem, which leads “straight to a social disaster…. [the government’s] bill 2.0 needs to be revised and improved. The same is true of the rental lease bill. As for speculation in the housing sector, its oxygen must be taken away.”

Climate and social security are also attracting the attention of the OGBL, which does not support cuts in pensions--a risk that exists, because the state coffers are not as full as in the past, we have heard. Taxing capital gains on shares is an advanced avenue to help bail them out, "and neither can we miss a fundamental discussion about taxing wealth. And it must be possible to massively increase property taxes."

A supervised and targeted “corona” tax could also be an avenue to follow.

Difficult times may lay ahead, but Back added that "we are ready to meet all these challenges. And to getmuscles out, if that's necessary. Let no one doubt this. The future is not written in advance.”

A second 1 May in digital mode for the LCGB

The LCGB, for its part, decided having its May Day completely in digital mode, for the second year in a row. And the health crisis inspired president Patrick Dury in his management at the European level. An institution that has played its role, because "as a small country, it is clear that we will not be able to face such a challenge without the European Union. We must therefore draw the right conclusions from this crisis. This is how the LCGB calls for a strengthening of the European Union, because at the global level, the European countries cannot mobilise the critical mass necessary individually to continue to exist through this exceptional situation."

But Europe must also change: “We cannot get rid of the feeling that activity in Brussels revolves exclusively around technocrats and bureaucrats in the European administration. This must end immediately.”

Conclusions must also be drawn at the national level, per Dury. And especially with regard to what happened in the retirement homes. “It is unacceptable that the high number of infections and deaths within these facilities due to the coronavirus is simply treated as fatality. The LCGB calls on the government to make every effort to ensure that sick and elderly people are treated only by vaccinated staff,” the president argued.

LCGB wants tripartite to prepare recovery

Health policy must also be audited and undoubtedly reformed. "The LCGB calls for a health policy that puts the patient at the centre of attention."

And as the economic crisis looms, "the LCGB calls on the government to bring together the national tripartite. The LCGB demands above all an inventory of the current economic and social situation, and this in the various sectors of the economy. The tripartite must prepare the economy recovery following the health crisis." A tripartite which will have to question on family purchasing power, as also requested by the OGBL, which is why "the LCGB is also demanding tax relief for low and middle wages." It will also be necessary to address the working world of tomorrow.

More social equity and more social dialogue

“Finally, the LCGB asks that the social model be strengthened as a result of this crisis. Our health fund will ultimately have to implement the improvements in services so often promised, particularly in the field of dentistry and visual aids. Our pension system absolutely needs to be strengthened with new funding models. If new tax models, such as a digital tax or a specific tax for the winners of the health crisis, will be implemented, the revenues must at least in part be used for securing and developing our social coverage,” explained Dury.

“Our country, our economy and our employees face great challenges. The LCGB calls on the government not to bury its head in the sand, but to find solutions in the interests of the employees within the tripartite. But we can only find solutions together. That is to say, all three: government, employers and unions. It is a shame that on the occasion of the last meeting of the European semester, where employers and representative unions at national level took a common position on the resilience and recovery plan and presented a common position paper on the development of tax revenues, the government has remained virtually without reaction,” concluded Dury, who therefore demands more social equity and social dialogue.

Teleworking also caught his attention. “Despite the fact that teleworking is well received by a large majority of employees, we are increasingly seeing that it has its limits. The isolation, the stress caused by the crisis and the upheaval in the organisation of work, the control and recognition of hours actually worked, etc., added elements to an already loaded [situation], upsetting the already fragile work-life balance of workers, and leading to a number of burnout... One of the keys to avoiding these scourges in our society is prevention. The role of the health and safety representatives present in the workplaces is to detect warning signs, to escalate them to management and to find a solution,” explained Roberto Mendolia of the Aleba financial sector trade union.

He added, “the health of employees must be the priority. The world of work today and tomorrow will have a different face. For sure. Remote working may become the norm. This new form of employability will need a framework and rules that are even better defined than they are today."

This article was originally published in French on Paperjam and has been translated and edited for Delano.