On 5 December 2016, the Luxembourg Minister for the Public Service and Administrative Reform, Dan Kersch, and representatives from the General Confederation of Public Service signed a new wage agreement.

Earlier this week, Minister Dan Kersch signed a new wage agreement for 2016-2018 with the General Confederation of Public Service’s Federal President, Emile Haag, and his Secretary General, Romain Wolff.

This agreement involves the government taking several measures related to remuneration, careers, the conciliation of professional life and private life, health, the employer’s social responsibility, and a simplified administration. The following are just some of the upcoming changes.

In relation to remuneration, civil servants and state employees will have a single premium allowance of 1% of the scale from 1916 to 1 April 2017. Moreover, the base index for employees of the state’s salaries will increase by 1.5% from 1 January 2018.

Regarding careers, the agreement means a harmonisation of the level of base salaries for state employee careers at equal levels of study, as well as the carrying out of a study aimed at harmonising career progression.

In relation to work-life balance, there will be new rules in the private sector and regarding work leave for family reasons. Furthermore, half-time work leave and part-time service will be replaced by a new system, and the current social leave of 8 hours per month will be replaced by one which lasts 24 hours every three months (January-March, April-June, July-September, October-December).

As for health, safety and well-being at work, a new administration will be implemented uniting the sectors of health at work, medicine in the workplace and safety in the public service. There will also be new regulations regarding sick leave and other periods of leave relating to health.
Finally, the disciplinary procedure will be reviewed in the aim to simplify and accelerate the procedures.

Photo: MFPRA. From left to right: Paulette Lenert, General Coordinator of MFPRA; Minister Dan Kersch; Emile Haag, President of CGFP