Luxembourg’s more than 4,200 Amazon employees are expected to learn that they can continue working remotely for 20 days a year despite an office-only regime dictated by US corporate headquarters, people with knowledge of the decision told the Luxembourg Times.
The company pull-back expected to be announced soon follows recognition that Luxembourg law requires companies with more than 150 employees to consult with its staff representatives before changes in remote working policies. That had not happened when Amazon CEO Andy Jassy declared in September that the company’s white-collar workforce among its more than 1.5 million worldwide staff must work from the office five days a week.
Recycling, transport, lifestyle: what Luxembourg does for the climate
In a few days, COP29 – the world’s biggest annual climate summit uniting 197 countries around the negotiating table – will come to an end.
While governments from around the world work on a deal to help limit the impact of climate change, the Luxembourg Times took to the streets of Luxembourg City to ask residents what they know about COP29, what they do to reduce their carbon footprint, and what they’d be willing to give up to protect the environment.
Luxembourg remains optimistic despite slow progress during COP29
Luxembourg’s government sent a delegation of experts to the COP29 to assist in the technical aspects of negotiating this year’s deal but discussions around financing have slowed down efforts.
This year’s climate COP in Baku, Azerbaijan has been marked by several drawbacks, like the withdrawal of Argentina’s delegation and the election victory of Donald Trump, who pulled the US out of the Paris Agreement in his first term.
The mood at the climate conference is mixed, as progress towards drawing up a deal has been slower than expected during the first – technical – part of the two-week event, Georges Gehl from the Luxembourg environment ministry told the Luxembourg Times.
“The mood here is a bit worse now because of the results of the American elections but on the other hand, I think it is clear for many players in the US that if they don’t make efforts in renewables in the next four years, their businesses will lose competitive edge compared to other countries,” Gehl said.
Luxembourg: boring and expensive or just misunderstood?
Listening to expat lore, Luxembourg is often descried as boring, too expensive and with terrible weather to boot. The country is working hard to polish its image to attract global talent but would do well to play to its strengths, rather than pretend being something it’s not, a branding expert says.
“Perceptions are very subjective,” said Steve Duncan, the managing director of Benelux-based ‘place marketing company’ C-Studios. “London and Paris are London and Paris. They’re the only places like that in the world. We can’t judge Luxembourg based on ‘is Paris cool’ or ‘is London cool’. We have to judge Luxembourg based on its competitive set and who is likely to want to live there.”
C-Studios was this summer appointed to help Luxembourg in its quest to attract and retain talent. “We’re focused on helping the Ministry of the Economy with its approach around global talent attraction in light of some of the demographic challenges that the country has – and frankly, every country is having, not just the EU, but everywhere,” Duncan said.
Multiple victims share experiences of sexual misconduct at Les Thermes
Last week, a woman who said she was sexually assaulted in the sauna area of Les Thermes in Strassen filed a police complaint about the assault. Now, more women and men have come forward with their own experiences having faced similar sexual assaults at the same facility.
Michèle told The Luxemburger Wort about her experience at the Strassen sauna. “When I wanted to take a shower after the sauna, there was a man standing there who kindly asked me if I minded if he showered there too. There was a lot going on in the men’s shower,” she said.
While she showered, she noticed that the man was masturbating. “I then swore at him and asked him to leave, which he did,” Michèle said. “At first, I was confused and couldn’t believe what had just happened.”
She could not locate an employee at the sauna to inform them about the harassment. The next day she called the manager of Les Thermes, who was unaware of the incident.
Bridging the gap: Luxembourg’s push into the active ETF market
With a subscription tax for actively managed Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) already on the chopping block, competition with Ireland in the market is heating up and both government and financial sector are keen to make headways.
The Grand Duchy, home to over €5 trillion in assets under management, has historically been the go-to domicile for actively managed Ucits funds. However, the rise of passive investing, particularly through ETFs, has largely benefitted Ireland, Luxembourg’s main competitor in the European fund industry.
Luxembourg is the largest domicile for Ucits in Europe with a 33% market share, with Ireland closing in at a 25% market share. But in ETFs Ireland has a clear and substantial lead over Luxembourg.
ETFs domiciled in Ireland account for 72% of the total European ETF market, while those in Luxembourg account for 18%.