Chapter 5: the european dimension
Chapter 5 - the european dimension
Contents
Congress last year adopted the Statement Britain and Europe - next steps, following the election of a new Labour Government with a positive approach to the European Union, and the conclusion of the Amsterdam Treaty which included the Social Chapter and a new Employment Title among other advances.
This new deal at institutional level, in addition to the decisions taken by special European Council meetings which in November brought into operation elements of the Employment Title, and at the beginning of May removed any remaining uncertainties about the introduction of the euro in eleven EU countries, provide the background against which the trade union movement needs to develop its strategy for the coming period. Other key developments include the launch of negotiations on EU enlargement and related changes in EU Structural Funds; and the adoption by the Commission of a new Social Action Programme for 1998-2000. The next Congress of the European Trade Union Confederation in June/July 1999 will be considering European trade union initiatives in the context of a changed, much more integrated, environment.
An ETUC delegation met the British Prime Minister on 28 October to discuss preparations for the special European Council meeting on employment to be held in Luxembourg on 20-21 November, as well as the priorities of the UK Presidency during the first half of 1998. The ETUC organised a lobby of the Luxembourg meeting.
National employment action plans
The special European Council, which it had been agreed should put into action the Amsterdam Employment Title even before the Treaty was ratified by all the Member States, agreed 19 guidelines, including employment targets for young and long-term unemployed and training for the unemployed, under four main headings: improving employability, developing entrepreneurship, encouraging adaptability in businesses and their employees, and strengthening the policies for equal opportunities. National employment action plans were to be drawn up involving the social partners, in particular in respect of training and modernising the organisation of work. Joint TUC and CBI contributions on these points were included in the UK employment action plan which was agreed at a tripartite meeting chaired by the Secretary of State for Education and Employment at which Mr Edmonds represented the TUC.
The ETUC Executive Committee in June called on all EU Governments to involve trade unions fully in the drawing up, implementation and monitoring of national action plans, and for the mainstreaming of equality between women and men to be put into effect across all four pillars of the employment guidelines. They criticised the refusal of the employers= organisation UNICE to accept that the guidelines were addressed to them as a social partner at European level.
These points were pressed by an ETUC delegation, including Mr Monks, which met the presidency Troika on the eve of the Cardiff European Council on 15-16 June, as part on a new institutional arrangement agreed following the Amsterdam Summit.
The European Council made an initial evaluation of the national action plans and underlined the importance of the contribution of the European social partners, and the need for economic reform to be linked to social dialogue. They set orientations for future work on employment to include developing skills and adaptability; strengthening action on equal opportunities and promoting family-friendly working practices; tackling discrimination against people with disabilities, ethnic minorities and other groups disadvantaged in the labour market; and promoting new ways of organising work. The Vienna European Council in December will examine the implementation of their plans by the Member States and may make recommendations.
The TUC was represented on the executive committee of >a people=s europe 98' convention organised in advance of the Cardiff summit, with the support of the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary. TUC and ETUC speakers contributed on the theme of employment and a number of trade union representatives from a range of European countries participated.
Territorial Employment Pacts (TEPs)
Ten TEPs have been set up in the UK, arising from the EU Employment Pact initiated by President Santer. They are being monitored by the structural fund programme monitoring committees. TUC representation on the TEPs, as well as in the committees, has been established. The basic objective of the TEPs is to encourage co-operation and an innovative approach among the relevant local/regional economic actors to improve the employment situation.
The TUC is also represented on the UK Objective 4 Monitoring Committee. This ,160m structural funding programme aims to help workers and companies adapt to industrial change. It is targeted at those threatened with redundancy and unemployment or adversely affected in other ways by industrial change and changes in production methods and techniques. Funds are available to meet the costs of research into skills needs, particular training programmes or new and more effective ways of carrying out training. The TUC has published a guide to the programme >Helping workers and companies adapt to industrial change=. As part of the EU consultation with the ETUC over structural funding policy, the TUC held a seminar on Objective 2 - funds for regions undergoing industrial decline, in November. Regional Affairs Minister, Richard Caborn, was the keynote speaker.
5.3 Economic and Monetary Union
Last year=s Congress Statement Britain and Europe - next steps concluded, on EMU, by expressing support for the Government=s approach to link policy on EMU to the framework of employment creation, including action at both UK and EU level; by calling for the value of Sterling to be brought down to a competitive and realistic rate - which would be helped by a serious debate led by the Government on EMU; and by calling for a UK task force to be established urgently to assess and monitor the UK=s preparations and options. Three motions and an amendment before Congress were remitted in the light of the Statement.
The issues were raised with the Chancellor of the Exchequer by a TUC delegation on 24 October. The following week, the Chancellor made a Statement to Parliament, the main message of which was that the UK should be prepared so as to be able to take a decision early in the next parliament. The Treasury=s plans for EMU preparations included a range of issues such as lead-times necessary to deal with the coming of the euro, which would affect the UK whether or not the UK joined immediately, and the setting up of a new Standing Committee, in which the General Secretary was invited to participate.
The General Council noted that the Government had adopted a positive approach in principle to joining the euro subject to meeting economic, not constitutional, tests. Among the factors that concerned the TUC, however, were the timescale that affected the value of the pound and therefore jobs, and a foreseeable lack of participation of the UK in euro zone economic and monetary decision-making bodies. The TUC=s emphasis would continue to be placed on the development of economic and employment policies taking advantage of the openings provided by the Amsterdam Treaty.
In February, an ETUC delegation, including TUC representatives, presented a memorandum outlining trade union priorities to the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary, Robin Cook, in his capacity as President in Office of the Council, accompanied by DTI and DfEE ministers. Among the points raised, the ETUC looked forward to a successful launch of EMU under the British Presidency and stressed the need to ensure that EMU rested firmly on an economic as well as a monetary pillar and that the ETUC should be able to make an input to policy formulation under both.
The European social partners met the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, immediately after the euro-summit in May, at which it had been decided that 11 EU countries would join EMU on 1 January 1999 and would introduce euro notes and coins from 1 January 2002. The meeting with the social partners was anticipated in a declaration adopted by the Council during the euro-summit pledging that all necessary initiatives would be taken together with them to create the conditions for combatting unemployment, particularly for young people, the long-term unemployed and the low skilled. The social partners have maintained contacts with Wim Duisenberg who was appointed President of the European Central Bank. TUC and ETUC representatives have also maintained contacts with members of the European Parliament who have been pressing for the operations of the ECB to be transparent.
In May, the Chancellor=s Standing Committee on Preparations for EMU considered the outcome of the euro-summit and agreed a series of steps to accelerate the Government=s information campaign in the light of a survey showing a widespread lack of knowledge of the implications of EMU for Britain. In addition to participation in the Standing Committee, the TUC is also involved in the Treasury Business Advisory Group on EMU which is considering options for a national changeover plan.
In July, the General Council received the first six monthly report on EMU preparations published by the Treasury at the request of the Standing Committee. This focussed on the launch of the euro on 1 January 1999 and reported that an outline for a national changeover plan would be prepared by the end of the year. TUC Regional Councils have been invited to participate in regional forums organised by the Government as part of its communications strategy on EMU.
The TUC has published a checklist for British representatives in European Works Councils, all of whom will almost certainly be employed by companies either headquartered or with subsidiaries in the euro zone, setting down questions to be raised with management and with trade union colleagues from other EU countries about the practical effects of the introduction of the euro. The checklist, which was translated into a number of languages including braille, was launched at an European Works Councils= conference in February.
The TUC organised a series of seven regional conferences with the support of the Commission bringing together employers, local authorities and others, in addition to trade union representatives, to discuss related issues. A seminar for trade union trainers was held at the National Education Centre organised jointly with the EU Economic and Social Committee.
5.4 Social Dialogue and the development of an EU industrial relations area
The ETUC has been pressing for the social dialogue process to be deepened further with the launch of the single currency, and the related increase in cross-border capital flows, business transactions, company mergers and takeovers. As the recommendations on the Broad Economic Guidelines recognise, wage developments will also form an important part of economic policy within EMU. Transparency of wages will arrive along with transparency of prices. From another perspective the social partners in Finland have developed a buffer mechanism to deal with possible external economic shocks taking place after the launch of the euro. All of this raises the question of what kind of collective bargaining needs to be developed at the European level and whether the current social dialogue process is sufficient to meet the tasks ahead. New responsibilities and rights for the social partners will arrive with the ratification of the Amsterdam Treaty. If the procedures are available will there be a willingness to use them on the part of the employers, is likely to become the main question for the coming period.
The Social Dialogue Committee has concentrated on employment once again this year, with discussions focusing on the Employment Guidelines and the role of the social partners therein, especially in the preparation of the national action plans. The other main topics have been the preparations for the launch of the euro, the adaptation of the Social Dialogue at Community level and the Social Protocol negotiations on fixed term contracts and the consultation on information and consultation in national level companies. A special seminar of the macro-economic sub-committee was held on the euro. The training sub-committee has continued its work on life-long learning, qualifications, vocational training for young people and training resource allocation.
The failure of UNICE, the private sector employers= organisation, to agree to negotiate on information and consultation in national level companies, precipitated a crisis in the Social Dialogue process. Two Social Dialogue summits have been called by the Commission in an effort to resolve the impasses and to find a new impetus to develop further the Social Dialogue procedure, particularly at European sectoral level.
In the meantime the European Parliament, concerned at the implications of the Amsterdam Treaty=s Social Chapter - which, once ratified, will send social policy proposals to the social partners for possible negotiation in the first instance, is seeking an inter-institutional agreement with the Council and the Commission to have its consultative role reinforced.
The Commission organised a conference together with the UK Presidency on New Ways of Organising Work in April 1998, which took place in Glasgow. The conference explored several themes arising from the employability and adaptability Employment Guidelines. The Commission challenged the social partners to develop a new contractual framework for modernisation based itself on >a whole spectrum of social partner engagement, from the creation of a common understanding of the importance of new forms of work organisation, through joint declarations and voluntary agreements, to binding contractual and legal initiatives=.
Communication on Social Dialogue
In May, the Commission published a communication on adapting and promoting the Social Dialogue following a wide-ranging consultation which was reported to Congress last year. While the procedures for consultation and negotiation at cross-industry level would remain generally unchanged, sectoral dialogue committees were proposed to replace existing bodies. Changes in the composition of the Standing Committee on Employment were also proposed. These proposals give rise to difficulties for certain categories of organisations and the matter is being pursued by the ETUC.
European Works Councils (EWCs)
The TUC has continued to assist unions in setting up EWCs. However, the pace at which agreements establishing EWCs are signed has slowed significantly. Across Europe there have been an estimated 50 agreements concluded with Special Negotiating Bodies (SNBs). Of these, nine are in UK-based companies.
A number of factors underlie this apparent slowdown. Firstly, the composition of some SNBs is such that progress is slow. Representatives from some countries may have mandates from very small numbers of employees, and are unlikely to be trade unionists. In these cases they have no experience of negotiating, and may be unclear as to the function of the SNB. Even the trade unionists may be meeting for the first time and find it difficult to establish clear negotiating strategies.
Secondly, the most sympathetic managements are likely to have already concluded voluntary (>article 13') agreements, leaving those less likely to be cooperative with trade unions. In some cases this may mean that attempts are made to impede the participation of trade union experts in negotiations, while in a few others it has meant SNBs or EWCs being set up without UK representation. This highlights the importance of trade union involvement for the successful establishment of EWCs.
Nevertheless, the TUC is aware of 20 SNBs which have been convened, and on which the UK workforce is represented. Seven of these are in UK-based companies.
This means that over 60 per cent of UK-based multinationals covered by the Directive have already agreed to the establishment of EWCs, or are in negotiations to do so. The chart opposite shows the situation as at June 1998. While unions have achieved good results in UK-based multinationals, much remains to be done, both amongst companies operating in Britain but based elsewhere, and amongst those coming into the picture as a result of the UK opt-in.
Thirdly, many of the companies still without EWCs are those with low or patchy levels of union organisation. These may not be seen as priorities for trade unions wishing to establish and consolidate EWCs.
It is now clear that the UK will transpose the EWC Directive into national law. This follows on from a decision at the Council of Employment Ministers in December 1997 to pass a directive including the UK in the existing EWC Directive. Legislation implementing this in the laws of all Member States will have to be in place by December 1999. The implications of this change were considered in detail in the TUC report
European Works Councils - what will the opt-in mean?. A first draft was issued in September 1997, and a revised edition was published in December, after the new directive became available.
A consultation document on the Regulations to implement the Directive into UK law is expected in the autumn of 1998, with legislation coming into effect in December 1999. There is uncertainty as to what form of voluntary agreement will be acceptable for companies covered by the Directive as a result of the opt-in. Consequently there have been no new agreements amongst those companies (although six had reached agreements before the 1996 deadline for agreements under the original directive).
In the meantime, emphasis is moving away from the counting up and analysis of EWC agreements to the critical appraisal of EWCs in practice. A third TUC conference of EWC members took place at Stoke Rochford in February, in partnership with the DGB and CFDT, also with delegations from the CGT, FNV, CC.OO, UGT (Spain), and ICTU. This was partly financed by the European Commission to enable the active participation of the overseas delegations. The conference was presented with the results of a survey of 200 EWC members. This showed that while trade unionists felt that the EWCs were worthwhile, there was dissatisfaction with the quality of information provided, and by the inadequacy of consultation prior to major events (particularly closures, reorganisations, mergers and takeovers).
The conference revealed a considerable need for training, not only on EWCs, but on understanding and evaluating company information and strategy. A report based on the presentations and discussion in the conference workshops and plenary sessions is under production, and will be used to assist EWC representatives.
Of further assistance to EWCs will be the development of comprehensive training programmes. As an aid to the design of such training, the Multinationals Information Project (MIP), together with the Education Service, is participating in a two year international project under the Leonardo programme aimed at designing tools for the analysis of training needs.
The MIP is also continuing with its coordinating activities amongst unions in some of the larger companies. A formal joint union protocol has been agreed by the various British unions within Compagnie GÄnÄrale des Eaux (now known as Vivendi), governing the selection of representatives to the EWC, development of the EWC agenda and reporting back. Similar initiatives in other companies have already resulted in the election of a joint union slate to the BTR plc Special Negotiating Body, and the agreement of joint slates for P&O and Hillsdown Holdings.
The 1994 Directive included provision for the Commission to consult with Member States and the Social Partners regarding the need for the Directive to be revised. Precise details of the consultation process have not yet been announced, but the ETUC has begun to consider the matter in the Democratisation of the Economy Working Group. In the aftermath of the closure of the Renault factory in Vilvoorde, revision of the definition and timing of consultation will be a high priority. So too will the participation of trade unions in negotiations, the provision of training and dealing with the implications of mergers and takeovers.
During the UK Presidency, renewed efforts (based on the Davignon Report on employee involvement) were made to arrive at an acceptable legal form for the European Company. This would be able to operate in any Member State without having to register separately in each one.
A series of new proposals were put forward, which concentrated on the protection of employee participation (for example, workersÕ representatives on supervisory boards) in European companies formed by merger between companies where some form of participation already existed. The TUC supported moves which would avoid the undermining of existing mechanisms, and consulted closely with the ETUC and DGB regarding the Presidency proposals.
Although considerable progress was made by the Presidency towards a model which would be acceptable to Member States, not all issues were resolved. Further attempts to bridge the gap are to be made under the Austrian Presidency, during which the TUC will consult closely with sister Confederations to ensure that the risk of undermining existing national systems is minimised.
The ETUC=s response to the CommissionÕs consultation document on the desirability of social partner negotiations on information and consultation in enterprises at national level was positive. However, UNICE asked for, and were granted, several extensions of the deadline for a response. Eventually, after a change of heart on the part of the German employersÕ association (BDA), UNICE responded on 11 March, arguing that such negotiations were unnecessary and would breach the principle of subsidiarity. This rejection of negotiations was heavily criticised by the ETUC.
Commissioner Flynn subsequently indicated that he would present proposals for a Directive on Information and Consultation. The British Government, in the Fairness at Work White Paper, confirmed that it was not persuaded of the need for such a measure.
High level group on industrial change
The Commission launched a high level group on industrial change, chaired by Mr Pehr Gyllenhammar, in response to the Luxembourg Jobs Summit Conclusions. The group prepared an interim report for the Cardiff European Council. A technical seminar was held between the Group and the social partners as part of the consultation process. The ETUC received the interim report as a positive step forward but noted that it was not yet an adequate response to the questions raised by industrial restructuring in the EU.
In March, the Executive Committee considered a DTI consultation paper about a proposed Regulation which would give the Commission power to direct a Member State to remove serious obstacles to trade. A key issue from a trade union point of view was whether a provision in the draft Regulation, which stated that the measure should not adversely affect the exercise of fundamental rights recognised under national law, was enough to ensure that lawful industrial action would not be affected. The ETUC had taken legal advice on the matter, which concluded that the proposal offered no such guarantee, and had called for its withdrawal and for consultation with the social partners prior to submission of any new text. The TUC responded to the consultation opposing the proposal along the same lines as the ETUC, and further contacts were taken between the TUC and ETUC and the DTI. In May, the Council reached a political agreement on a proposal of the UK Presidency replacing the Commission proposal with an information mechanism about possible obstacles to trade which should not affect national provisions governing industrial action.
Directives on European Works Councils, parental leave, burden of proof in equal pay cases, and part-time work, originally adopted under the Maastricht Social Chapter from which the UK was excluded, were adopted under harmonisation of legislation procedures so as to be directed to the UK in advance of ratification by all the Member States and the entry into force of the Amsterdam Treaty, which incorporates the Social Chapter.
The Commission has adopted a new Social Action Programme (SAP) for 1998-2000 concentrating on employment policy, following the conclusions of the Luxembourg Jobs Summit and the adoption of the Employment Guidelines. The adaptability and employability pillars of the guidelines feature large in the new SAP. The Commission declared its intention to consult the social partners on a framework agreement on all the elements of work organisation, including, among other things, working time flexibility. With regard to employability, the Commission also agreed to encourage the social partners, at their various levels of responsibility, to conclude agreements to increase the possibilities for training, work experience, traineeships and other measures. A package of proposals promoting free movement of workers; promoting social inclusion and achieving equality and fighting discrimination also form a major part of the new SAP. The ETUC worked closely with the Parliament, through the ETUC/Parliament Intergroup, to align proposals for the new SAP.
Since the Commission launched the consultation on the application of the directive to the sectors temporarily excluded from the provisions of the directive (transport, other work at sea, doctors in training), there have been lengthy discussions on a sectoral basis. Progress has been made in road transport, rail and sea transport but little progress has been made in air transport. It has proved to be easier to agree on including the non-mobile workers in the transport sector than the mobile workers. Draft framework agreements are still being discussed (see also chapter 1).
Under the UK Presidency a new compromise amended text was drawn up and politically agreed at the 4 June Social Affairs Council, to be formally adopted at a later Council meeting. The process of political compromise moved rapidly in the final month, during which time the TUC and the ETUC lobbied strongly over a number of amendments to the original 1977 directive. An ETUC delegation including Deputy General Secretary Erik Carlslund and Mr Monks met Ian McCartney, the responsible minister, before the Council meeting. In particular the ETUC asked the Council to keep to the agreement made in 1997 between the Commission and the European Parliament. Unfortunately, the Parliament had a right to only one reading, which formed the basis of that agreement.
On the positive side it is clearly recognised that the amended directive applies to the public sector; that it applies to subcontracting operations and that it enables Member States to apply the directive to pension rights. On the negative side, the compromise text includes phrases from two recent European Court of Justice cases which, although conditioned by an addition to the recital saying the scope of the directive remains unchanged as interpreted by the Court, could create legal uncertainty.
Fixed-term contract negotiations
Arising out of the Part-time Work Agreement, in which the social partners agreed to come back to other forms of atypical work, negotiations began in March 1998 on Fixed term contracts (FTCs). Five plenary negotiating sessions have been held to date. While progress has been made on the use of the principle of non-discrimination (equal treatment) for workers on FTCs little progress has yet been made on how FTCs should be regulated and limited. In this respect the ETUC and employersÕ mandates are widely divergent with the ETUC wishing to have some degree of regulation and the employers wishing to have as little as possible. Unions are being consulted on the current state of the negotiations, in advance of further talks planned for September.
Supplementary Pensions Directive
This Directive was adopted in principle at the June Social Affairs and Education Council. The Directive, which will take effect in three years, will enable workers benefiting from these pensions to retain their advantages even if they move from one country to another. It aims to preserve acquired rights, guarantee cross-border payments, maintain the possibility of posted workers contributing to their supplementary pension schemes, and it requires pension schemes to provide all the relevant information to scheme members. A number of UK unions had been active in achieving this result, through direct representations to the Government and working through Eurocadres.
In March the Executive Committee considered an initial ETUC response to a Commission communication on modernising and improving social protection in the EU, particularly in respect of the individualisation of rights. TUC representatives on the ETUC Executive Committee had agreed that social protection systems should be adapted to take into account womenÕs rights to autonomy and financial independence. A more in-depth discussion would take place before the end of the year.
In March, the Commission presented its Action Plan for combatting racism across the European Union. It consisted of four strands: paving the way for legislative initiatives, including the intention before the end of 1999 to table a proposal for legislation to combat racial discrimination using the competences extended by the Amsterdam Treaty; mainstreaming the fight against racism; developing and exchanging new models through a range of pilot projects and networks; and strengthening information and communication action, building on achievements of the European Year Against Racism.
The communication recognised the role of the social partners in combatting racism, and the Commission wished in particular to encourage initiatives by them with a particular focus on joint action. An ETUC Committee, in which the TUC participates, is considering how to progress the proposals, including the draft >Starting Line Directive= for which Congress has expressed support. Further action is reported in paragraph 6.3.
Among the issues raised with the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary at his meeting with an ETUC delegation in February was the involvement in the enlargement process of the social partners from EU as well as from countries wishing to accede to the Union. This proposal, towards which Mr Cook was positive and which is supported by the President of the Commission, was referred to in the conclusions of the European Conference which launched the process on 12 March, and raised again by an ETUC delegation including Mr Monks with the Austrian Chancellor in May as part of the preparations for the Austrian Presidency.
Following those contacts it was agreed that a major social partnersÕ conference should be held at the beginning of 1999. In July the Social Dialogue Committee agreed to set up a joint ETUC/UNICE/CEEP working group to bring forward proposals, in particular, about developing independent social dialogue in the applicant countries - which is one of the issues which those countries are asked to address as part of their Accession Partnership agreements. The Economic and Social Committee has developed structured contacts with representatives of economic and social organisations from the applicant countries and held a conference on Accession Partnerships in July.
In March, the General Council agreed a response to a DTI consultation paper on practical aspects of enlargement, stressing in particular the need for applicant countries to bring their social policy provisions into line with those of the EU, and calling for a White Paper to be issued by the Commission on those questions.
In May the TUC responded to Commission proposals to reform the EU=s structural funds as from the 1 January 2000, in particular, in the light of the proposed enlargement. A preliminary consultation with the DTI had taken place in February. The response generally welcomed proposals to use the funds to pursue the policies brought forward under the Amsterdam Employment Title. Specific areas of concern were outlined in respect of the impact of the proposals on UK regions, and on the need to strengthen the application of measures to combat racism and to provide the opportunity for genuine social partner involvement in the programmes. The response was brought to the attention of the Government and of a House of Lords sub-committee which had called for evidence. The Cardiff European Council agreed that negotiations on the Commission proposals should conclude by March 1999. The issues are also being followed through the ETUC.
The TUC continues to maintain a high profile in relation to a wide range of organisations and bodies relating to European issues.
The Europe Monitoring Group, chaired by Mr Edmonds and including Ms Donaghy, Mr Dubbins, Mr Jackson, Mr Morris and the General Secretary, have continued to scrutinise important European developments to facilitate the work of the Executive Committee. The Monitoring Group have discussed ways of improving information and consultation of unions about social dialogue developments.
The TUC holds monthly meetings of the Network Europe Contact Points, composed of representatives of affiliated unions, at which up-to-date information on European developments is discussed.
The TUC Brussels Office maintains close contacts with the ETUC and its Industry Federations, the European Parliament (particularly its Employment and Social Affairs Committee), the Commission and other European institutions. The office takes part in the network of national trade union centre representatives in Brussels and during the year has received and assisted a variety of trade union groups and other visitors. It helped to organise a number of conferences, seminars and other meetings.
The work of the Multinationals Information Project (MIP), which is part of the TUC=s Europe Unit, together with the Brussels Office, is reported above in paragraph 5.4.
The TUC European Information Service, as one of the sectoral information relays established in conjunction with the London Office of the European Commission, provides affiliates with access to a wide range of European publications and databases.
The TUC also publishes EuroBriefing, an occasional round-up of EU issues for wide dissemination, which is accessible on the TUC website together with other information on European subjects.
European Trade Union Confederation
Ms Donaghy, Mr Edmonds, Mr Monks and Mr Lea represent the TUC on the ETUC Executive Committee. The ETUC has in affiliation 56 national trade union centres in 28 countries with a total membership of about 53 million. Also affiliated are 13 European Industry Federations covering all the main fields of activity.
TUC representatives have continued to participate in the work of the European Trade Union Institute, the European Technical Bureau for Health and Safety, and the European Trade Union College, which are linked to the ETUC.
Economic and Social Committee (ESC)
During the year, TUC representatives, including Tom Jenkins who has continued as President of the Committee, have played an active part in the work of the ESC, which scrutinises all important EU draft legislation as well as acting on its own initiative particularly in fostering contacts with economic and social organisations around the world. British trade union representatives have acted as experts for the ESC trade union group on a number of subjects including the banning of asbestos and the Action Plan Against Racism. In July, the Government nominated Campbell Christie, Ken Jackson, Tom Jenkins, Helen McGrath, Alison Shepherd, Eddie Warrillow and George Wright as members of the ESC trade union group for the next term of office of the Committee starting in October.
In July the ESC plenary session agreed wide ranging changes in ESC structures and working methods, to help the Committee respond more effectively to changes in EU competences and priorities, particularly following the Amsterdam Treaty. During the UK Presidency, Government representatives were involved in a number of ESC meetings in Britain and in Brussels to discuss a wide range of issues.
Professional and managerial staff representation
The TUC convenes meetings of interested unions covering Professional and Managerial Staffs (P&MS) which, through their membership of the TUC, are members of the ETUC P&MS Council - Eurocadres. This allows access, in particular, to the annual Eurocadres General Assembly and Symposium, which was held in Brussels in December and focussed on executives and working time. Discussions in the TUC group centre on issues relating to the free movement of P&MS in Europe, and their representation in the social dialogue. Particular attention was given to advancing, during the UK Presidency, an EU directive on supplementary pensions. A Eurocadres booklet on the subject was widely distributed.
A UK P&MS Symposium was held in Congress House in March in which some 70 trade union representatives including members of the Eurocadres Steering Committee participated, and which was addressed by the Minister of State at the Department of Trade and Industry, Ian McCartney. The meeting endorsed a framework agreement for professional and managerial staffs setting down elements of a minimum standards agreement to be negotiated with employers, which was also approved by the Executive Committee. This was published as part of a report on P&MS in the labour force specially commissioned from the Labour Research Department.
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