On Saturday, Minister of Labour and Sports Georges Mischo spoke to our colleagues from RTL Radio.
Mischo once again sharply criticised the Luxembourg Football Federation (FLF) for its recent decisions. The rebuke came after national team coach Luc Holtz selected Gerson Rodrigues for two friendlies despite the player’s recent assault and domestic violence convictions.
The controversy escalated on Friday when feminist organisation CID Fraen an Gender staged a protest during Luxembourg’s friendly match against Slovenia. According to the group, security personnel forcibly confiscated their banners, leaving one woman with two injured fingers, one broken and one dislocated.
Minister Mischo condemned the incidents as “awful”, demanding an apology from the FLF. He criticised the disruption of the protest as a violation of freedom of expression, stating that “a line has been crossed”. Mischo also reiterated his disapproval of Rodrigues’ selection, suggesting the player should have been banned from the friendlies or potentially even faced a six-month suspension. He plans to address the matter directly with the FLF in the coming days.
Separately, as Labour Minister, Mischo confirmed he will not withdraw his contested bill to expand Sunday work hours from four to eight hours per shift. Despite strong opposition from trade unions and the Council of State – which labelled the proposal a “regression” – Mischo emphasised that discussions are ongoing within the government and parliamentary groups.
While open to dialogue with unions and employers, Mischo declined to specify potential amendments. He noted that the absence of formal oppositions by the Council of State means the government is not obligated to revise the bill. Even if adopted as-is, he argued, businesses would retain the choice to remain closed on Sundays. Mischo defended the proposal, claiming it would reduce employee commutes by allowing eight-hour shifts every other Sunday instead of four-hour shifts weekly.
Mischo dismissed union accusations that the government is avoiding social dialogue, countering that it was union representatives who walked out of an October 2024 meeting of the Standing Committee on Labour and Employment. While acknowledging regular contact with social partners, Mischo addressed recent tensions: unions suspended negotiations two weeks ago, demanding a formal tripartite meeting as a condition for further talks.
The government has instead proposed a discussion with unions and employers on 9 July, which Mischo explicitly clarified is not a tripartite meeting. He argued that because the country is not currently facing a crisis, this term should not be used. As of now, unions have not confirmed their attendance at the scheduled meeting.
As Luxembourg prepares to transpose a 2022 EU minimum wage directive into national law, Minister Mischo emphasised that no decisions have been finalised. Technical discussions are underway with experts from the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (STATEC) and the General Inspectorate of Social Security (IGSS) to assess implementation options – including a potential exclusion of public-sector salaries from calculations.
While Mischo declared that he is “not against increasing the minimum wage”, he stated that any adjustment requires careful analysis and consultation with social partners.
The minister added that the directive’s adoption will also depend on upcoming European-level talks this autumn.
