FACTBOX-Strikes, protests in Europe over cost of living and pay

* Hundreds of workers at British security company G4S voted to strike for 48 hours in early December in a dispute over pay, trade union GMB said on Nov. 22, warning the walk out could cause cash shortages over Christmas. * Exxon Mobil said on Nov. 21 its 390,000 barrel per day (bpd) Fawley oil refinery in southern England was unaffected by strike action.

European countries face strikes and protests due to high energy prices and a wider rise in living costs. Here are details of some of the industrial action and demonstrations. BRITAIN

* Thousands of British nurses

will strike on Dec. 15 and 20 for more pay, their union said

, putting further pressure on the state-run health system. * Some 400 fast-food delivery staff employed by Tesco-owned Best Food Logistics have voted to strike over pay, the GMB union said on Thursday.

* Postal workers began a two-day walkout on Thursday and a six-day strike in the run-up to Christmas looked set to go ahead after the Communication Workers Union rejected a pay offer from Royal Mail on Nov. 23. * More than 70,000 staff at British universities and teachers in Scotland walked out on Thursday to demand better pay.

* Thousands of British railway workers will stage further strikes over the next two months in a long-running dispute over pay, the RMT union said on Nov. 22, signalling travel disruption before and after the Christmas holiday period. * Hundreds of workers at British security company G4S voted to strike for 48 hours in early December in a dispute over pay, trade union GMB said on Nov. 22, warning the walk out could cause cash shortages over Christmas.

* Exxon Mobil said on Nov. 21 its 390,000 barrel per day (bpd) Fawley oil refinery in southern England was unaffected by strike action. GMB Union workers had voted to strike on Nov. 21 to Dec 2. over pay. * Thousands of British civil servants plan a month of "sustained industrial action" over pay, the Public and Commercial Services union said on Nov. 18, after the biggest strike vote in its history.

* Tesco said some 280,000 of the supermarket chain's workers will be able to receive up to 25% of their contractual pay early if they pay a small fee. * Outsourcing firm Mitie offered its lower-paid workers a support package totalling 10 million pounds ($12 million), including one-off bonuses, retail discounts and options to borrow money against future pay.

* Unite said more than 700 workers at Bakkavor's food factory in Lincolnshire will strike from late November until the new year over pay, which the union said would hit Christmas food supplies to Sainsbury, Tesco and Marks and Spencer. * Pay awards by British employers held at a 30-year high of 4% in the three months to October, well below annual inflation of more than 11%, data from human resources company XpertHR showed.

GERMANY * The Verdi union said Black Friday work stoppages were planned at 10

Amazon fulfilment centres in Germany as part of the Make Amazon Pay initiative targeting the online retailer worldwide.

* Volkswagen agreed on Nov. 23 a two-year wage deal for around 125,000 workers at its western German factories, offering around 8.5% more pay - below inflation but more than other employers have yielded in recent weeks. * Germany's IG Metall union agreed on Nov. 18 a below-inflation pay deal in a powerhouse region, setting the benchmark for 3.9 million metal and electrical sector workers nationwide.

* Trade union Verdi said on Nov. 18 it had reached a wage agreement with energy company RWE for roughly 18,000 employees that includes one-off 3,000 euro ($3,122) payments and salary increases of at least 6% from Feb. 1. * Lufthansa and the UFO union have reached a pay agreement for 19,000 cabin crew members, the German airline said.

* German carmaker Audi favours offering employees one-off tax-free payments instead of permanent wage increases, its human resources director said. NETHERLANDS

* BP said on Nov. 22 that a pay dispute was delaying the planned restart of its large refinery in Rotterdam. FRANCE

* Trade unions UNAC and SNGAF said they were calling for strike action over work conditions at Air France during the Christmas holidays from Dec. 22 to Jan. 2. * France's EDF said on Oct. 27 it had formally signed a wage agreement with all unions present at the company.

SPAIN *

Zara shop workers in its home town of A Coruna started a two-day strike

during its "Black Friday" sales campaign.

* Insurer Mapfre will give approximately 10,000 employees a 400 euro ($417.32) bonus at Christmas to help them cope with soaring inflation. It paid a 350 euro bonus in July. * Thousands of Spaniards packed Madrid's landmark Plaza Mayor square on Nov. 3 to demand higher pay, its first mass protest since the start of the cost of living crisis.

PORTUGAL * Thousands of doctors, nurses, teachers and civil servants walked off the job on Nov. 18 to demand wage increases amid rampant inflation.

AUSTRIA Austrian metal workers secured on Nov. 4 an average annual pay rise of over 7%, above the 6.3% inflation rate for the negotiating period, which may be a bellwether for other sectors. ($1 = 0.9609 euros) 

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)