Reflections on collective bargaining techniques from the ETUC

1. Reflections on collective bargaining techniques from the ETUC Ronald Janssen, ETUC September 2008 rjanssen@etuc.org

2. Structure of the presentation • Two subjects • European social dialogue • Coordination of national collective bargaining rounds • Two dimensions • The ‘official’ story • Practical lessons to be learned

3. European Social Dialogue or European Collective Bargaining • The background: ‘No one can love a market’ (Jacques Delors) • A deal between Commission and trade unions in Europe

4. Internal market is necessary but not enough! • Why have an internal market? • Key word = competition between firms • Intense competition will lead to innovation and productivity • However, key question is how companies compete with each other • One way: To invest in innovation, new products, new techniques • Other way : Cut-throat competition at the expense of workers…as well as innovation. Example of Siemens-BenQ (and many others…).

5. Correcting the internal market: The European Social dimension • European Social Acquis to build a social level playing filed for competition in the internal market • Maastricht Treaty (1992): Formal role for European Social partners to be consulted and to conclude agreements on working conditions • Possibility of social partner agreements being made binding European social directive

6. The European Social Acquis in practice: A selection • Maternity rights • Four weeks paid holiday a year • Control of working time (maximum average of 48 hours, proper rest breaks) • Posted workers to be paid the minimum wage or the collectively agreed wage in country of service

7. The European Social Acquis: Social partner agreements: • Equal Rights for Part-time workers • Putting limits to fixed-term work • Restructuring (2003) agreement • Principles jointly underwritten by ETUC and European employers: • A-typical work to remain exception, not the rule • Comparable rights for part time workers • Dismissing workers: last available option

8. Recent situation • A « moratorium » on Social Europe (Lisbon version 2005; Commission social agenda) • Employers not ready to ‘blow up’ European Social Dialogue : Shift from ‘hard’ agreements to ‘soft’ (or, as they call it ‘voluntary’ agreements (stress,….) • However, employers looking for ways to use ESD to their advantage: The Joint Analysis of Key Challenges Facing the Labour Market (October 2007)

9. Lessons from European level collective bargaining • We do not understand. Please explain to us • Move as a pack of wolves…. • … and single out the ‘obstructionists’ • Try and try again to score your point • Introduce terms the other side does not fully understand but which you can explain to your own advantage afterwards

10. Lessons from European level collective bargaining • Sign anything but make sure you impose your reading of the ‘text’ afterwards’ upon politicians and press (« ETUC has signed a flexicurity agreement, hence agrees with ‘easy firing ») • Create confusion by claiming the other side actually agrees with you but does not dare to admit this in public • A key lesson : A succesful agreement requires a minimum position of power to enforce the good application of that agreement

11. Second theme • Coordination of national collective bargaining rounds

12. Economic Europe as a challenge • Internal market (1993): Competition over the borders • Logic: More competition should imply more innovation… • … but employers (and governments) may also be tempted to compete at the expense of working conditions • Danger of employer blackmail (threat of delocalisations, importing ‘cheap’ labour that does not raise « difficult » questions

13. Economic Europe as a challenge • Monetary union reinforces these trends further: • Competitive devaluation no longer possible, so risk of competitive wage moderation • Practice turns out to be somewhat different (and worse): Country central in monetary union does no longer fear wage moderation will be offset by the appreciation of its currency and has gone for total wage moderation

14. Economic Europe as a challenge • Contagion and ‘bad example setting’ behaviour: Concessional bargaining in one country is immediately ‘marketised’ throughout Europe (Siemens case as a classical example)

15. One picture says more than a thousand words

16. Cooperation exists since more than ten years • ’94-’95: EMF, followed later by European textiles and chemicals • 1998: Doorn group (Be,NE,LUX,GE,FR) • 1999: ETUC committee on the coordination of collective bargaining

17. What do they do? • Bringing together the collective bargainers over the borders in order to: • Exchange information (Eucoban network fex) • General orientations for collective bargaining in each country (wages in line with inflation and productivity) • Evaluation and follow-up on an annual basis (annual reports, Executive Committee resolutions)

18. What has been the experience? • Diversity of national bargaining systems • Cling on to ‘national autonomy’ • Domestic pressure from national employers and national governments • Experience with wage formation in monetary union

19. What has been the experience? • But also positive developments: • Mutual peer pressure on trade union bargainers (examples: GE 2001, NL 2006) • Much better knowledge of each others’ bargaining systems/ ‘learning from each other’ • In particular Eastern European colleagues much interested • Awareness that no one in Europe negotiates on an ‘island’ is higher than it ever was

20. One step further for the ETUC • From « coordination » to « cooperation » • Real time exchange of information to be ahead of the ‘media circus’ of the employers… • … and to turn things around: To put the focus on those agreements we like • Common campaigns on common demands (EMB on access to training/ ETUC on wages in general)

21. The ETUC campaign on wages • Launched beginning 2008 • 30.000 workers on the streets in Llubljana • …and Croatia, Poland, Belgium, Italy,.. • Messages : Fair share of GDP, real wage increases, stop rising profits and soaring CEO pay, no to gender pay gaps, no to poverty wages

22. ETUC campaign

23. ETUC campaign material

24. Practical lessons • Wake up call for many governments and employers: Wage demands and workers’ problems are European problems, shared by the rest of Europe • European action moves the starting position to start national negotiatons from. • However, there are ‘storms’ ahead