Summary: A roundup of the latest coverage regarding the Staff Union of the European Patent Office (SUEPO) and some bits about the UPC, which makes Europe a lot more vulnerable to multinational patent aggressors

THE EPO was disrupted yesterday. It was nearly half empty. This morning (just a couple of hours ago) SUEPO stated that a "letter of support [was sent] from EPSU to the Staff Union of the European Patent Office" and that "The European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) represents more than 265 unions. This week, its General Secretary Jan Willem Goudriaan sent a letter of solidarity to SUEPO, whose members take industrial action on Thursday 7 April."

Here is the original letter. dated yesterday:

This week, General Secretary Jan Willem Goudriaan sent a letter of solidarity to SUEPO (Staff Union of the European Patent Office (EPO), whose members take industrial action on Thursday 7 April.

The letter reads:

Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to send you solidarity greetings from EPSU for your action on 7 April. We hope that the strike is solidly supported across all the European Patent Office sites. We have been following the dispute and keeping our affiliates informed (www.epsu.org/a/11984).

A victory in this dispute will be important not just for EPO employees and the two trade union representatives who were dismissed in January but will have broader implications in terms of social dialogue and collective bargaining rights in international institutions. It is a matter of major concern that the EPO management has been arguing that European and international rights do not apply to bodies like the EPO. A successful outcome for SUEPO will send a clear message that employees in international institutions will not be denied these rights.

Yours,

Jan Willem Goudriaan, EPSU General Secretary

In addition to articles we've mentioned before about the strike, there was more press coverage about this strike. Battistelli is away right now; he's busy trying to mess up the British system with the UPC. This morning we found British patent lawyers saying: "The launch of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) is imminent."

"It doesn't look too good for Battistelli's plan, or so-called 'reforms' which include treating staff like prisoners, making it easier for large corporations (not European) to sue all over Europe, and so on."That's utter nonsense. Self-fulfilling prophecies such as these are an attempt to make the UPC a reality by just repeatedly stating that it's inevitable, never mind a potential British exit from the EU, a major EPO overhaul, and sacking of Battistelli, who has been a UPC mastermind for at least 6 years.

EPO examiners, not just judges, board (of appeal) members etc. should recognise that the UPC is dangerous to them (both as workers and as European citizens). Regarding the EPO strike, one comment (only a single comment was posted) suggests sacking half the staff (basically a Battistelli purge). To quote: "sack the lazy feckers, the rest can then actually start doing some work. To be honest we'd be better off without them - just make the national patent office harmonise policies instead" (harmonisation is an old byword for UPC).

It doesn't look too good for Battistelli's plan, or so-called 'reforms' which include treating staff like prisoners, making it easier for large corporations (not European) to sue all over Europe, and so on. It's basically a corporate coup, and Battistelli views himself as the master of ceremony.

Gurry, judging by this new article, hasn't resigned yet. Remember how he and Battistelli competed for the same job (at WIPO) and consider how they both ended up attacking whistleblowers and even causing suicides. Apparently some dead people are the price of the "better good" for Republicans like Battistelli (just like in Iraq). They know what's better for everyone else and no disagreement will be tolerated. ⬆