In a country with such a large amount of projects, is it still justifiable to shut down all construction works for three whole weeks?
The collective leave, a significant achievement from the 1970s, results in a pause in construction work twice a year, at the end of July and December. Most construction sites close collectively during these periods.
“If that is still time-appropriate needs to be discussed with our social partners,” said Georges Mischo from the Christian People’s Party (CSV) in an interview with RTL on Wednesday morning. “We could consider changing the dates of the break or making it shorter. There should be another possibility instead of shutting all construction work down for three weeks.”
The trade unions were taken aback by these comments. The Luxembourg Confederation of Christian Trade Unions (LCGB) secretary Robert Fornieri pointed out, “I think the minister knows that the topic of the collective leave is an integral part of the collective labour agreement.”
This agreement is negotiated and signed by the federation of employers and trade unions. To date, there has been no mention of modifying the collective leave during meetings.
“Employers and employee representatives have agreed that the collective labour agreement includes a collective leave,” emphasized Jean-Luc de Matteis, Luxembourg Trade Union Confederation (OGBL) secretary. While the solution may not be perfect, this would be the only one that guarantees a summer break for everyone.
Neither the trade unions nor the employers question the temporary halt in construction. Of the 25,000 construction workers under the collective agreement, 415 are currently working on various sites. Roland Kuhn, president of the Fédération des Entreprises de Construction, is puzzled by the need for further discussion on the collective agreement.
“We are willing to talk about anything, but this is one point we really need to uphold. We need the collective leave,” Kuhn argues. Smaller businesses, in particular, could struggle if employees were constantly on leave, as construction work relies on teamwork and not every job can be covered by multiple employees.
According to Jean-Luc de Matteis, trade unions and employers have never sought to eliminate the collective leave because it benefits both parties.
Not all construction sites have ceased operations; 118 sites remain active. The unions and employers state that there have been no significant issues with this arrangement. “For every important construction site, we have always been able to make an exception,” notes Roland Kuhn.
These exceptions include critical projects such as school and company buildings, which need to continue during the break due to lower activity levels. Such exceptions are agreed upon by the trade union inspection ITM, the unions, and the employers, ensuring mutual acceptance.
Déi Lénk, however, disagrees with this assessment. In a press release, they stated, “The Minister of Labour now suggests taking away the employees’ last little advantage. We find this unacceptable.”
Watch the report in Luxembourgish:
