Luxembourg's Ministry of Mobility and Public Works, together with the FGFC, OGBL and TICE unions have reported that a meeting took place at the ministry on Monday 15 July 2024 on progress in the TICE agreement negotiations.
During this meeting, Luxembourg's Minister for Mobility and Public Works, Yuriko Backes, the leaders of the TICE bus network union, the FGFC municipal workers' union and the OGBL trade union discussed the current situation. For the first time, the staff delegation and the unions were invited to discuss the ongoing negotiations on the TICE agreement.
At the beginning of the meeting, Minister Backes underlined her efforts to expand public transport in the south of the country, as twice as many passenger journeys are expected by 2035 compared to 2017.
Minister Backes made it clear that there would be no privatisation of the TICE bus network and that staff would not have to worry about their jobs. The president of the transport union assured that there would be no cuts in social benefits, which means that primarily civil servants would continue to be employed. According to the press release, these assurances were received with relief and approval by the unions.
Those present also discussed the involvement of the Ministry of Mobility and Public Works in the transition to electrification of the TICE bus fleet and its infrastructure. The unions reportedly welcomed the ministry's willingness to support this important step.
In addition, the employees welcomed the promise that the ministry is prepared to extend the next agreement to a period of six years.
Nevertheless, the ministry and social partners acknowledged that many questions remain unanswered, particularly with regard to overall financing and whether TICE will continue to operate school transport, the late-night bus and the municipal lines under the new agreement. The press release noted that many municipalities, not just those in the TICE network, are struggling with financial bottlenecks and the future situation is not expected to be any easier.
All those involved agreed that municipal and national transport has high quality standards which must be maintained. These include safety, high-quality and practice-oriented training for employees and the general quality of the service. The ministry and social partners concluded that the agreement on many points shows that there is a common understanding of the need for high-quality and sustainable municipal transport infrastructure in public transport.
