*Update 14.03.2023 DGT staff meeting Luxembourg 09.03.2023 [1] the acting DG stated that the only element of standby duty which is voluntary (yes, this there is a bit of mental gymnastics in a duty being voluntary) is that the translator has some flexibility in the choice of week. That is, this is official confirmation of what was stated in the 2019 Central Staff Committee note 18/12/2019 (2019)7798989 [2]: ‘The scheme is ‘voluntary’ in that it is stated that staff are not obliged to be on standby. In practice staff report that they feel obliged to ‘volunteer’ in order to share the burden with colleagues.’ Note also that compensation is ‘up to middle managers'(Article 55(3) [3] requires a more detailed system than this.**Update 19.12.2022, congratulations on finishing the Permanent Delegation of Translators (DPT [4]) elections and we note with concern the suggested plan to fit Brussels DGT staff to the available space in any new building [5], as opposed to finding a building to fit the number of staff.*
We look again at the situation in DG Translation (DGT), both in response to contact from colleagues and as a follow up to what was discussed in our last meeting [6]. There are a number of important issues specifically related to DGT but which might also affect colleagues elsewhere, so this meeting is by no means restricted to just one group colleagues. If you want to discuss your concerns in-depth and share your concerns and ideas with us, join our meeting on Friday 2 December 13.15-14.15. Connection details are here [7].
Here is a list of suggested topics feel free to get in touch [8] to add anything we’ve missed:
- Workload and recuperation; stand-by duty
| 03/02/2022 (2022)793994 |
Abuses of DGT standby duty system and lack of overall compensation [9] + Annex [10] | DGT [11] 19/04/2022 CCP [12] 12/07/2022 HR [13] 01/08/2022 |
| 18/12/2019 (2019)7798989 |
Standby duties – request for information and consultation [14] + Annex [15] |
- teleworking (Permanent Delegation of Translators (DPT), 2021, Summer Opinion Survey [16], our own survey [17] and articles [18], the failed courtcase on teleworking expenses [19].
- Workload: e-translation
| 19/07/2021 (2021)4657470 |
Use of unrevised machine translation for the RRF and unsustainable workload in DGT [20] | HR [21] 05/08/2021 |
- Staff cuts, temporary agents selection
- Outsourcing
- Building policy for DGT: open plan/building closures [22]/reduced temperatures [23]
| 22/07/2022 (2022)5321057 |
Closure of Loi-56 Building 25 July-19 August [24] + Annex [25] | HR [26] |
Special meeting for DGT staff (Friday 2 December)
See you on Thursday!
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