Unions from across Europe are calling for action on workplace issues including working time and chemical hazards at work during the UK presidency of the European Union. European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) general secretary John Monks has led a delegation to Downing Street in London last week to present the ‘Trade Union Memorandum,’ a list of key priorities. 'The ETUC hopes that real energy and creativity will be deployed to help Europe face the future with more confidence and in a better atmosphere than has prevailed recently,' said John Monks.

Among issues dealt with by the memorandum are: calls on the UK presidency to push ahead with revision of the Working Time Directive, to end the individual ‘opt-out’ provision; to look for a compromise to unblock the draft directive on temporary agency workers; and to move forward on important issues like the REACH chemicals regulation and gender equality in all areas of policy-making.

• ETUC press release
• Trade Union Memorandum