At last, on Wednesday evening (19.05.2021) HR announced a date for the start of operation ‘return to the office’: from Wednesday 9 June onwards the Commission anticipates moving from phase 0 to phase 1. In practice, this means that while teleworking will remain the norm, staff will be encouraged to go to the office, still on a voluntary basis. The maximum presence in the buildings – to be complied with at all time – will be raised to 20%. The canteen in the Berlaymont building will be reopened. Continue reading Get ready: the return to the office is starting in June
Working conditions
Hot-desking: do not mistake the finger for the Moon!
*update 22.02.2022: we’re hearing that colleagues are changing DG in order to avoid open space/hot-desking. Is this you? Get in touch, we’d like to hear from you!*
In the COVID information meeting of 30 April 2021, the Director of Office for Infrastructure and Logistics in Brussels (OIB), Mr Marc Becquet, accused trade unions and staff associations (OSPs) of spreading fear and discontent among staff by sending too many messages and tracts on hot-desking and workplace arrangements. Continue reading Hot-desking: do not mistake the finger for the Moon!
The future: no more lunch in Commission buildings
If you were fantasising about returning to the office one day and resuming the usual lunch with colleagues [1], think again!
The new L107 (the ONE, Brussels), apparently the role model for all Commission buildings in the very near future – will not have a canteen, even though it will house more than 1500 staff – indeed, such a large number of people would fully justify the presence of a canteen. So, it seems that with the ‘new normal’, everybody who wants to eat in this showpiece Commission building will be treated to the following choice: either try to run faster than the others to get a spot at the – very small! – cafeteria in the building or lose a lot of precious time to go to possibly overcrowded canteens in other buildings. Continue reading The future: no more lunch in Commission buildings
Survivor’s pension: discrimination
The purpose of this short piece is not to repeat what is already available on Staff Matters under Survivor’s pension (or our General pension FAQs) but to make you aware of the outcome of a recently decided case (T-374/20 – KM v Commission: available in German and French) that might be of interest to you or your loved ones. Continue reading Survivor’s pension: discrimination
New teleworking scheme: longer working days and more micromanagement?
*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 New teleworking scheme: longer working days and more micromanagement?
Generation 2004’s position on ‘sofagate’ and beyond…
The president of the Commission published a speech (26 April 2021) where she states that she considers the ‘sofagate’ events of 7 April to have been gender discrimination. Until then, and in the absence of details and statements it was important to keep a cool head and to view the whole affair in all its complexity to look at all the factors that might have played a role. Continue reading Generation 2004’s position on ‘sofagate’ and beyond…
Welcome to ‘The Wild West of Teleworking’ Photography Contest
*We would still like to receive your pics and stories*
Still working at the kitchen table after 13 months? Your bills increased exponentially? Cannot afford a decent home office with your salary?
If all of this sound familiar, it is time to participate in our photography contest!
Send us pictures of your home office set-up, your bills before and after compulsory teleworking started Continue reading Welcome to ‘The Wild West of Teleworking’ Photography Contest
A difficult Easter for DG SCIC staff?
DG Interpretation (SCIC) colleagues contacted us recently to have more clarity about working-time arrangements for the Easter holidays.
There are more restrictive leave-management rules in place at DG SCIC in general, for example the need to announce changes to a leave schedule 2 months in advance. Continue reading A difficult Easter for DG SCIC staff?
Latest on COVID: vaccines a little behind initial estimates
*Update 11.10.2022 Covid booster II campaign is starting soon (again medical service in Brussels and national authorities elsewhere) and flu vaccine is already available on some sites* Commissioner Hahn said in his video message (16.3.2021) that ‘we are all impatient to be free again’. At this stage, please allow me to modify his message and stress that ‘we are all impatient to be finally vaccinated’ (at least most of us). After 1 year of teleworking at home we are all fed up with this situation and cannot wait to resume a normal life. While entering the third wave, we are facing yet another lockdown. As most countries begin to tighten the restrictions, the vision of going to visit our loved ones over the Easter period seems to be vanishing. The pressure is high, our workload has increased, some of us at the brink of burnout, digital overload is a hard reality and some of us are worried about our family members in other Member States, which are currently fighting for their lives. Continue reading Latest on COVID: vaccines a little behind initial estimates
Remote-working precedent: a workaround or a can of worms?
In January a call for expression of interest presented the possibility to work in a DG Health and Food Safety (SANTE [1]) unit in Luxembourg from any Commission site ‘for about six months’. As stated in the email, the initial Luxembourg-wide call had been unsuccessful, so this was a ‘plan B’ of sorts in these difficult times, a workaround.
Unfortunately, this quick fix opens a can of worms (there are so many issues here we almost didn’t know where to begin, hence the delay in writing this article. If you spot any additional issues, please feel free to get in touch and we’ll add them to this list!) Continue reading Remote-working precedent: a workaround or a can of worms?
