Our country guides set out the key elements of national law as it applies to: recruitment and selection; pay and benefits; employee rights; contracts of employment; training and development; equal opportunities; industrial relations; health and safety; and termination of employment.

State of play:

Draft EU employment legislation state of play, March 2011
Our monthly update gives the current position on all significant items of employment-related draft EU legislation that are currently in the legislative pipeline, or due to be proposed in the near future.

News:

Commission consults on review of professional qualifications Directive

European Commission asks UK to comply with asbestos Directive

European employers outline views on Working Time Directive revision

EU-wide agreement reached on recruitment and retention in healthcare

Citizens given right to propose EU legislation

Electrolux signs international workers' rights agreement
Electrolux, the Sweden-based white goods manufacturer, has become the latest multinational company to sign an agreement guaranteeing minimum employment standards and workers' rights throughout its worldwide operations.

SPAIN EMPLOYMENT LAW GUIDE PUBLISHED
Our series of XpertHR guides to national employment law now includes Spain, the EU's fifth-largest country and an important location for UK companies' overseas operations.

Distinctive features of Spanish employment law include: a requirement for collective redundancies to be approved by the public authorities; a large number of different forms of employment contract; and an extensive system of family- and care-related leave for employees.

EU-level developments reported on this month include: a European Commission review of the Directive on the mutual recognition of professional qualifications; employers' positions on a review of the Working Time Directive; and an EU-wide accord on recruitment and retention in the healthcare sector.

Also, our March state of play table update keeps you up to date with the latest position on all draft employment Directives and other EU legislative proposals.

Mark Carley
International editor, XpertHR