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.

MINIMUM WAGES ACROSS EUROPE
Our annual review of national minimum wage rates highlights the huge economic and pay disparities that persist within Europe. While a relatively small proportion of the workforce is paid the minimum in most countries, a comparison of the various national rates (which usually represent around 40% of average national pay) indicates the scale of Europe’s pay differences.

The minimum wage in Luxembourg is more than 14 times higher in cash terms than that in Bulgaria, and even when adjusted for differences in the cost of living, is six times higher. The UK, which has Europe’s sixth-highest minimum wage, is part of a group of northern European countries with minima far ahead of those in southern Europe, which in turn have much higher rates than eastern European states. There is little sign of significant convergence.

EU-level developments reported this month include European Commission threats to legislate on increasing women’s participation on company boards, continuing deadlock on the employee participation aspects of a plan to create a new form of Europe-wide private company, and the European Trade Union Confederation’s priorities for 2011-15.

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

Mark Carley
International editor, XpertHR