EPO Administration: Wait Several Months or Until Next Year for Clarifications
THE EPO is stressing the workers financially and morally (especially the new recruits who replace experienced examiners, aren't paid enough, and still see the total number of examiners decreasing in spite of a rise in workload). A couple of recent publications at the EPO's intranet [1, 2] mention the cost of health/insurance. Given the dire mental state of many workers (it's the job's fault!), both psychologically and physically, such coverage would likely be imperative.
Just before the weekend the Local Staff Committee The Hague (LSCTH) circulated the following communication to more colleagues, perhaps urged to calm some of them down because (to quote) "questions are still pending" and many workers worry that their income is watered down by many unforeseen expenses (not envisioned when joining the Office).
Here's the full message from the LSCTH:
Cigna and VECOZO network - To opt in or not to opt in? What we know so far
After the intranet announcements of 18 September and 27 September and recent emails from CIGNA concerning opting into the VECOZO network, colleagues have been contacting us with queries and requests for guidance.
For the time being, what we know is that:
There is no obligation or time limit for staff members to opt-in. The deadline of 11th October in the email you received from Cigna was only to guarantee registration with VECOZO by 1st January 2025. A later opt-in date will only lead to a delay in the registration date of some weeks or months;
Opting-in to the VECOZO network makes it easier for the administration of the healthcare providers in the Netherlands to identify that an EPO staff member is insured.
A lot of questions are still pending, some of which we have put to the administration in our recent meeting of the sub-committee of the GCC on social security, remuneration and pensions, for example whether it is possible to opt-out further down the line and implications for the coverage and reimbursement. We were told that we can expect some responses to the questions after consultation with Cigna. We further requested that additional information be provided to staff so as to clarify the full scope of the implications of opting-in.
The administration informed us that further intranet announcements can be expected in November and December, and that an information session is foreseen for all staff in the Hague in January 2025.
[...]
António Campinos has given up on basic duties; not only does he break the law*, he's also letting the health of staff languish away. It means that the very people who do all the work at the Office will die younger and poorer (while the rich get richer with their monopolies).
People should commend the work done by LSCTH. At least some people at LSCTH still have the courage to speak out. █
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* There have been many illegal schemes, set aside the granting of European software patents - i.e. patents which are both illegal and undesirable.