Welcome to the EMF By: Tony Murphy, Company Policy Director.

1. Welcome to the EMF By: Tony Murphy, Company Policy Director.

2. Introduction to the EMF Main areas of work Company Policy European Work Councils (EWC’s) EWC Coordinators Transnational Restructuring Questions Overview of presentation

3. European Industry Federation (EIF) • Founded 1971 (Benelux, D, F, I) • 69 member organisations in 29 countries • 17 languages • 6,2 million metalworkers • ETUC member

4. Main goals • Cooperation between affiliates – Developing Common Positions and Common Policies • Interest Representation vis-à-vis European Institutions • Counterweight vis-à-vis European employers’ organisations and multinational companies

5. Different trade union structures Differing Degrees of Organisation Different Industrial Relations Systems Different Collective Bargaining Systems Financial Resources and Size of Staff Different Languages Features of Union Workat European Level

6. Unionisationof theworkforce

7. Unionisation of the workforce BULGARIA 30% ROMANIA 45% TURKEY 13% MALTA 59% CYPRUS 70%

8. Industrial Policy Collective Bargaining Company Policy Social Dialogue Main areas of work

9. EMF Structure Congress Executive Committee Steering Committee Secretariat Collective Bargaining Policy Committee Company Policy Committee Industrial Policy Committee Steel Industry Defence Industry Training and Education WP Automobile Eastern Europe WP Aerospace Equal Opportunities Committee Shipbuilding Youth Issues ICT

10. Company Policy focuses on all elements of workers’ interests in the company: Involvement of workers (information/consultation/participation/negotiation) Restructuring and reorganisation Social issues and working conditions Industrial and economic aspects The actors of the EMF Company policy: the EMF, the national unions, EWCs, EWC coordinators, board members Company Policy

11. Information & consultation of workers is a high priority at European level: Workers’ involvement is a common feature in European Countries Transnational Social Dialogue Internationalisation of economies and companies first experiences : 80’s (VW, Renault, SKF, ...) Demand for more than 25 years Directive 94/45 approved on 22.09.1994 Scope: the European Economic Area (EEA) Information and consultation at EU level: the EWC directive

12. The development of the European Union has led many big multinational companies to operate more and more on a Europe-wide basis. Reducing trade barriers and harmonising standards has meant that everything, including jobs and money, can be moved around more easily within the EU, and big companies naturally take advantage of this. This has led to an increasing number of major decisions in multinational corporations being taken at European level. So key aspects of the working lives (and indeed the futures) of the growing number of people who work for such companies are more often decided by top management located outside………. What are EWC’s

13. European Works Councils (EWCs) were set up to address these problems. They were designed · to give representatives of all European workers a direct line of communication to the top managers no matter what country they were from; · to make sure that workers in different countries were all told the same thing at the same time about transnational policies and plans; · to give workers’ representatives in unions and national works councils the opportunity to consult with each other and to develop a common European response to their employers’ European plans, which they could then present to management before those plans were…………..…………………………… What are EWC’s for

14. EWC: State of Play • 2200 companies concerned – 550 in the metal • 800 agreements – 330 in the metal (46 obsolete) • 15 000 reps • 80 ongoing negotiations + renegotiations • 01.04.2004 + 01.01.2007: make EU enlargement a reality for EWCs • EWC concerned in the metal sector: 160 • 01.05.2006: 135 EWC enlarged

15. The role of EWC and practices • Information and consultation (no participation) • EWC is about transnational and strategic issues • Role and challenges for employees representatives: understand strategic information, develop a European approach, act as one group (get to know each other), develop communication, report back

16. The role of EWC and practices • Differences in social dialogue create different expectations and misunderstandings • Non union members ? • Role of management

17. Participation Collective Bargaining Consultation Industrial Action Information Legal tools Trade union tools

18. The role of EWC and practices • The EMF view: • An important transnational tool – the only one ! • Access to strategic level of decision-making • Information but limited consultation • => EWC: a tool to reinforce trade union influence in MNC • Make the best out of it !

19. EWC agreements: EMF key issues • The EWC agreement: the basis • Information and consultation rights • role select committee and facilities • role of the expert and coordinator • translation • Integration of CEE Countries • control on agenda, minutes and process • training • Communication

20. Revision of the EWC Directive • Timeframe: 7 years demand • Procedure of consultation of the social partners started in April 2004 • Some key issues : . Strengthened information/consultation rights . Improved working facilities (training, etc…) . Guaranteed expert role . Role unions and European Federations . Sanctions

21. EMF EWC Coordinators Objective : EWCs should become real European information and consultation bodies, with trade union (EMF) influence, support and guidance How : designating an EMF Coordinator for every existing EWC

22. EMF EWC Coordinators Role of the EWC coordinator: • Must know what happens in his/her EWC • First contact for other unions • Support and guide for EWC members • Give a TU persepctive • Safeguard the general interest of European workers • Promote EMF policies towards existing EWCs, CB, IP • Link between EWC(members) and EMF

23. Profile: Good understanding of EMF activities and political views Preferably a trade union officer Designation: Preferably from the country of the headquarters Nomination endorsed by the Executive Committee Expert clause = EMF coordinator EMF EWC Coordinators

24. EMF EWC Coordinators Support EMF EWC coordinators A role for the EMF: • Support and promote EMF coordinators on a day to day basis • Training • Continuous flow of information on EMF decisions, opinions and activities A role for national trade union organisations

25. Change = A permanent feature EMF position: ensure socially responsible restructuring National solutions are not sufficient any more Pressure from the employers to play off workers against each other eg. General Motors  Only one response = a European response via coordinated and common strategies + secure trade union and workers unity To ensure socially responsible management of restructuring Increasing number of company cases (GME, Electrolux, Arcelor…) – learning from experiences How to deal with transnational restructuring: the EMF way

26. How to deal with transnational restructuring: the EMF way • The principles: • Complementary between EWC and TU: • Anticipation and full transparency of information • Information/consultation at European level • European trade union coordination • European platform (industrial and social aspects) • European framework agreement (solutions acceptable • for all) • European mobilisation (in line with national practise)

27. Conclusions • Anticipation of change: • Improved social dialogue to limit negative impact on employment • Anticipation of skills needs • Promote life-long-learning • Promote positive mobility

28. Contact Tony Murphy (Company policy) tmurphy@emf-fem.org Isabelle Barthes (Company Policy) ibarthes@emf-fem.org