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On 3 October, in connection with the renewal of the global agreement (*) concluded between the Carrefour group and the Uni Global Union federation (see linked press release issued by Uni Global Union), the signatories appended a European Works Council declaration “addressing the issue of violence against women at work” to the agreement, (see “A question for…”). As far as we are aware, this is the first time that this theme has been broached in the context of global social dialogue. The signatories point out that, according to UN Women, one in three of the world’s women suffers domestic violence, of either a physical, sexual or psychological nature. This means that potentially, across the group as a whole, one third of the group’s 160,000 female employees may be affected. The text emphasises the need for training, and to organise awareness-raising actions. The declaration calls on employers not to punish a female employee on grounds of incompetence before first satisfying themselves that such shortcomings are not linked to a “personal problem” and to “show empathy, listen and be on the alert if they observe changes in a female employee’s behaviour”. The signatories also call on people to reject “sexist or degrading comments and behaviour aimed at women in the workplace” and to refuse to let these become commonplace. Actions will be monitored by a European Works Council working party, which will meet three times a year. Speaking at the signature ceremony of the global framework agreement, Guy Ryder, Director-General of the ILO, described the initiative as “ground-breaking”.
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