Number of Patent Grants Has Plunged 23% Amid Strikes at the European Patent Office, Today There Are More Strikes (Strike Participation at Over 3,000, More Than Doubled Since Winter)
There is a growing crisis at the European Patent Office, as we explained the day before yesterday. On the last day of May we mentioned industrial actions' Anchor Days in June and today is another key day. Last week the union in Germany sent out an "Invitation to General Assembly on Monday 8 June, 14.00 hrs" (about 10 hours from now).
Quoting SUEPO Munich:
SUEPO Munich Action Plan for 2026
Dear SUEPO members,
Dear Colleagues,
Mr Campinos maintains his proposal for a new salary adjustment procedure eroding the salaries, pensions and benefits of EPO staff.
The delegates in the Budget and Finance Committee meeting of 20 and 21 May gave a positive opinion on the proposal in preparation of the Administrative Council meeting of 30 June and 1 July.
Later this year, the Administrative Council will meet on 13 and 14 October to decide on the re-election of Mr Campinos for a third mandate. The new salary erosion procedure is part of his strategy to obtain the necessary support from the delegates.
Therefore, SUEPO Munich invites to a General Assembly on Monday 8 June, at 14.00 hrs to be held via MS Teams.
Agenda:
Feedback from the Budget and Finance Committee
Presentation of ballot on the continuation/intensification of the Action Plan 2026
AOB
Join the General Assembly. [...]
Timing: 8 June 2026, 14.00 hrs
Like on most Mondays, there is overlap or coordination in actions over in The Netherlands.
Indeed, there was a reminder to join the strike today. The reminder came from the Local Staff Committee The Hague:
Slides General Assembly SAP. Monday 8 June: Strike Anchor Day
Dear colleagues,
On 2 June, 563 colleagues attended the General Assembly on the Salary Adjustment Procedure (SAP) convened by the Local Staff Committee The Hague (LSCTH). The following topics were broached:
Update on the recent Budget and Finance Committee
Participation and impact of the industrial actions
Information on the potential continuation of the action plan
Please find the slides of the presentation here.
Furthermore, the LSCTH informs of the SUEPO industrial action plan which includes strikes any day of the week, work-to-rule and strike anchor days on Monday 8 and Friday 26 June. All staff may register for strike via q/myfips (like registering annual leave but choose “strike” instead).
Those "slides of the presentation" they speak of are not entirely unique, but they still give the general public an idea or insight into EPO affairs:
We won't be covering the elections as that necessarily involves naming individuals and it would not tackle the real issues directly. █