At the May ERIS meeting, Rob Martin, GMB and ERIS Board member, led a discussion on What the 2015 General Election Result Means for Labour, the Unions and Europe. The election result surprised voters, the parties, pollsters and the media, yet clearly the polls themselves and how they were reported by the media influenced the result hugely by concentrating voters’ minds…read more →
At the April 2015 meeting, ERIS discussed the question: The Greek Election – What Does it Mean For the Future of Europe? The economic problems in Greece are a touchstone for a much wider situation in Europe and highlight long standing issues: around the democratic deficit at the heart of the European Union; the democratic will of the Greek people…read more →
ERIS Meeting Notes: Saturday 21 March, 2015 In March 2015, ERIS invited Georges Dassis, Greek trade unionist, committee member of the ETUC, ITUC, ILO and President of the Workers Group on the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) to discuss: Trade Unions and Democratic Reform in the European Union – the Role of European Economic and Social Committee Background: The…read more →
ERIS Meeting Notes: Saturday 14 February, 2015 In February 2015, Stefan Pfiefer, a German Economic and Industrial Adviser to the Labour Prime Minister of Nord Rhine-Westphalia, visited ERIS to discuss the question: German Political Parties and Their Response to the FarRight? As evidenced in the last European Election, anti-immigration, Euroscepticism, anti- Islamic and nationalist politics is on the rise and…read more →
8 November 2014 Is the European Union good for Trade Unionists? Speaker: Luis Miguel Pariza: Member of the European Economic and Social Committee Good morning, and warm thanks to ERIS for this invitation. It is a great honour for me to be here with you again, at a meeting of good friends. We are all committed to workers’ fight for social…read more →
In September 2014 ERIS looked at the implications of the proposed EU/US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) for workers, trade unions and public services? Although TTIP negotiations are being largely conducted behind closed doors, Bert Schouwenburg, GMB’s International Officer, outlined growing concerns in the British and European trade unions about how this free trade deal covering two of the world’s largest…read more →
ERIS European Election Briefing 1: Why Voting in the European Election May 2014 is Important for Trade Unions? Introduction: The purpose of this briefing is to provide information about the European Elections on Thursday 22 May, 2014. Europe is a highly charged issue in the UK and euro-scepticism and anti-European voices often drown out any reasonable and measured discussion about…read more →