Did you know that there are some Commission-wide initiatives in which you can take part if you wish to break the daily routine, share your knowledge and experience? You may become an ECMentor, if you have at least 15 years of experience in the organisation, a genuine interest in others and wish to help new colleagues to develop. Continue reading Looking for new & exciting challenges?
z Newsletter article
Advocacy bearing fruit: administration boosts reclassification quotas
We are happy to announce that in response to our note and collective effort with the central staff committee (CSC), HR has finally taken a significant step forward in improving the career prospects of contact agents (CA) engaged under Article 3a of the Conditions of Employment of Other servants (CEOS)[1]. The quotas available to promote (’reclassify’) CA3a staff are to increase. Continue reading Advocacy bearing fruit: administration boosts reclassification quotas
Operation Hiver – Winter is over
*Update 15.10.2024, while we did receive a response from HR it did not provide the requested figures, we are following up on this. In the meantime, please continue to complain to your proximity team (Brussels/Luxembourg) if you suspect that your work area is below the minimum[*]: leave a paper trail!*
Original article: Winter is over and we have not yet received a reply to our note to HR and OIB/OIL asking for the year of data on office temperatures. Continue reading Operation Hiver – Winter is over
European Schools – It’s not about asking for extra budget
Some of the problems of European Schools are difficult to solve: perhaps the biggest are the lack of career perspectives in general for the teachers (but particularly for those recruited locally e.g. in Ispra) requiring a structural organizational change, and the long-standing overcrowding in Brussels requiring substantial investment. But, it’s not simply enough to throw money at the problems, greater reform is needed to future-proof the European School education system. Continue reading European Schools – It’s not about asking for extra budget
From culture of trust to control freak
*Update 27.02.2025: the question of whether managers can/should use Teams/Skype or other status as an indication of your presence/availability has been raised repeatedly, particularly given that you might have a different status on each platform. Check out question 14 of the flexible working FAQs for written confirmation that this is not their intended use and that status is not a reliable indicator of presence or non-presence.* Continue reading From culture of trust to control freak
Electric vehicle (EV) charging-point disparity
*Update 14.10.2024 Luxembourg-based colleagues, the maximum reimbursement (‘ceiling’) for cross-border commuter passes has been doubled to €500 from 01.10.2024.*
*Update 24.07.2024 the Green Commuting Communication for staff in Brussels mentions the ongoing provision of FREE EV charging there, with no end date in sight. There is no date as yet for EV charging to be made available (free or otherwise) in Luxembourg buildings. The same text proposes to pay Brussels-based colleagues who cycle €100 per year. We asked about provision for other sites, but the response was negative. Why the inconsistency? Mixed messages on greening undermine the whole idea.* Continue reading Electric vehicle (EV) charging-point disparity
One step forward in our fight: internal competition for AST & AST/SC (+training offer)
*Update 23.05.2024, COM/AST3/2024 competition exam date will be June 5, 2024. Enrolment on COM AST3 training with follow up sessions are closed. Registration for the self-study option is still open. *Update 02.05.2024 COM/AST3/2024 indicative planning has been updated, but still not precise enough to allow for holiday planning. Continue reading One step forward in our fight: internal competition for AST & AST/SC (+training offer)
Newsletter editorial – 15-03-2024
We wish you all a (belated) international women’s day: we firmly believe equality is something to be done year round, not just 8th March. What have we done in the last year? and Is it a man’s world? We consider too how more flexible working benefits everyone. Linking with flexibility, there are 3 public holidays you can choose to work and get the day back. For Brussels-based colleagues we outline the pitfalls of reimbursements via mobility.net. From limited reimbursements to non-existent reimbursements: own-initiative training (OIT) has been effectively defunded: have a look. In other news, Generation 2004 responds to the confirmation that the European Commission’s use of Microsoft 365 infringes data protection law and we expand on the many outstanding concerns related to fingerprint building access. We ask for your help on behalf of a volunteer group working in Ukraine, we speak up on behalf of colleagues having technical difficulties with EPSO and internal competitions and show what is being done with Member States taking decades to comply with pension transfers-in. So, that’s it for this time.
Enjoy the reading and get in touch if you believe we can help!
The European Commission infringes data protection
*UPDATE 24.01.2024: Instead of correcting the transfers, the Commission has appealed the EDPS decision at court. The European Commission’s use of Microsoft 365 infringes data protection law for EU institutions and bodies. This is the statement by the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), the independent supervisory authority for the protection of personal data and privacy for EU institutions, as published in its press release EDPS/2024/05 of 11 March 2024. Continue reading The European Commission infringes data protection
High time for more flexible teleworking, also from abroad!
The implementation of the Decision on Working Time and Hybrid Working (WTHW) was evaluated by DG HR at the end of 2023 and, while targeted actions are now expected, there will be no big revision, the promised flexibility is still one-sided. Generation 2004 was pleased to notice that the evaluation is overall very positive and that many managers also appreciated the enhanced flexibility of WTHW and made use themselves of the possibilities to better reconcile their private and professional lives. Continue reading High time for more flexible teleworking, also from abroad!
