Many of you have contacted us, asking about “Have your say”, which suddenly disappeared from the Commission’s internet, after it underwent a superficial “lift”. Either you liked to follow on various discussions, share your opinions, or even, for a stronger impact, launching a topic that was important to you. However, all of that is now gone.
Social security fairness for non-permanent staff
***Update 30.07.2024 DG HR position on the payment of unemployment insurance by CAs on permanent (‘indeterminate duration’) contracts (3A)***
Generation2004 believes that the regulation governing social security contributions and pensions can be tricky, to say the least. Unlike officials, contract and temporary agents find themselves subject to additional deductions labelled as CCA ‘Unemployment insurance (personal contribution)’ code on their payslip, referring specifically to unemployment insurance Continue reading Social security fairness for non-permanent staff
Securing pensions for Contract & Temporary Agents during unemployment
*Update 12.03.2025 refusing a contract renewal is counted as resigning, this is not new, but the information could be made clearer.*
Original article: Your Contract Agent CA3B (or a different non-permanent) contract at the European Commission has ended. Despite your determination to continue contributing to the EU project, you can no longer work directly for the Commission (e.g. you have reached six years as CA3B). You can work for another institution or for the Commission, but on a different contract than CA3B.
Continue reading Securing pensions for Contract & Temporary Agents during unemployment
Automatic declarations of Belgian Third-party allowances announced by PMO
European Union staff has the right to 3 types of family allowances: household allowance, dependent child allowance, school allowance. The statutory provisions (articles 67 § 2 and article 68 § 2 of the staff regulations) foresee rules against the overlapping of all family allowances granted by the European Union and received from other sources.
Continue reading Automatic declarations of Belgian Third-party allowances announced by PMO
Training offer for EPSO Competitions
* Update 04.02.2025, Training closed. * Generation 2004, in collaboration with Yasemos Europeos, is happy to offer you online training for EPSO competitions with a special discount rate for our members. The offer includes modules on Self-study Multiple Choice Questionnaires (MCQ) and reasoning Computer Based Tests (CBT). All training modules will be in English.
Are interpreters being listened to?
New technologies do not always bring benefits for everybody. One of the collateral victims of more digitalisation are interpreters. The job of an Interpreter was already difficult in the “old” days of meetings in situ, with interpreters working from booths in the conference room where delegates negotiated EU policies.
Lunchtime conference with guest speakers: My Safety – Understanding and Addressing Urban Violence in Brussels
*update 28.06.2024, the Recording and presentation are available (NB: in *.Zip format). Brussels, the heart of Europe, is a vibrant city but like many cities (big and small), it faces challenges related to urban violence. Recently, incidents of violence in Brussels have become a growing concern affecting the safety and well-being of our staff and our citizens
Summer holiday 2024 checklist (Tips)
For those of you who remain in the office keeping the Commission standing (thanks!), please check out the heatwave instructions for dealing with hot Offices and the list of buildings to be temporarily closed under Buildings Energy Saving Together (BEST) 2024[1]. Read our related article on how these closures undermine that working from home is voluntary.*
Generation 2004 support for local democracy – Sign up to vote in Belgian local elections (DDL 31 July)!
Did you know that Brussels is the most international city in the democratic world? There is as much as 315,000 eligible international voters, 77% of them being EU citizens. They are one third of all potential voters across the 19 Brussels communes. In some communes such as Ixelles, Saint Gilles or Etterbeek, non-Belgians make up almost half of the population.
Empowering contract agents: Generation 2004 calls for amendments to 7- year rule
***Update 15.10.2025 DG HR position on the application of the anti-cumulation (‘7-year’) rule***
Original article: We would like to inform you that following your numerous and regular questions concerning the 7-year rule (originally 6-year rule)[1] which applies to Contract Agents (CA) 3B, we submitted an official note to the administration requesting clarification on its application and ultimately the extension of the 7-year rule by 3 additional years. The rationale behind this request is clear, but we know that 10 years is generally avoided since this is the threshold for entitlement to an EU pension.
Continue reading Empowering contract agents: Generation 2004 calls for amendments to 7- year rule
