Negotiating the Future of Work: Automation and New Technology
The core aim of negotiating around automation is that the introduction of new technology should not be made unilaterally by employers but by mutual agreement. Consent and negotiation around technology is beneficial to workers and employers alike. For employers, open dialogue about innovations can prevent reactions and disruption further down the line.
At the strategic level, workers’ concerns around new technology must be addressed with social partners in terms of its impact on whole sectors of the economy, regions and skills needs. The Wales 4.0 report recommends the government create a number of new structures; that, if implemented unions could participate in, such as: ‘Industrial Innovation Clusters’ that will be responsible for Industrial Transformation Roadmaps for different parts of the country, a ‘Future Economy Commission and a new institute to monitor the labour market. Meanwhile, unions can use Wales’ established social partnership forums to negotiate positive new technology outcomes for workers.
There is already progress towards an agreement on digitalisation in the Workforce Partnership Council (WPC) covering the public sector. However, progress on issues has been slower in the Council for Economic Development structure set up for partnership working in the private sector.
Example: Partnership working on digitalisation in the Public Sector
The Workforce Partnership Council is developing a set of principles on digitalisation that support the involvement, participation and consultation of staff and trade unions when new digital and data methodologies and new technologies are introduced. This follows the recommendations of a WPC report on the impact of innovative technology on the public sector workforce and will build upon the principles of the Partnership and Managing Change Agreement which requires state employers to use best endeavours to ensure employment continuity whenever changes are made which affect the workforce. It also requires employers to consult trade unions at the earliest appropriate opportunity and before any irreversible decisions are made. The report and agreement are available here:
Workforce Partnership Council, 2021: The future of work: the impact of innovative technology on the workforce: A report on the key issues impacting the workforce created by the changing nature of work.https://gov.wales/the-future-of-work-the-impact-of-innovative-technology-on-the-workforce-html
Workforce Partnership Council agreement: partnership and managing change, https://gov.wales/workforce-partnership-council-agreement-partnership-a…;
At the workplace and employer level, new technology is such a potentially huge issue affecting workers that it warrants its own space for discussion apart from any existing joint negotiating or consultation committees. Unions that have agreements on new technology have set up new Joint Working Groups on technology and others are consulted via their partnership structures.
A 2019 BEIS Committee report argues that this consultation should begin early on: “For businesses investing in automation and changing how they work, engagement with the workforce needs to take place well before significant changes are considered or begun, rather than at the point that new technology appears in a workplace.”
Example: CWU and Royal Mail: National Trials Working Group
In the 2018 Four Pillars Agreement, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) and Royal Mail Group (RMG) established a National Trials Working Group to discuss and agree to deploy new initiatives including new technology and equipment. The structure, which has been in place since that date, ensures that the union has a voice in any new technology the company introduces from the point of concept design. Further, the new technology is subjected to a trial period under terms agreed upon by the union and measured by agreed criteria.
The actual wording of the agreement is:
Royal Mail and CWU will consult fully on the aims and objectives of proposed new methods, technology or automation at the concept design stage. A trial will be designed to seek to validate the proposed change. A terms of reference will describe the content, location and success criteria. Timescales for the trial should be expedient and will not exceed 90 days. When success criteria are demonstrated as met, this will trigger deployment, subject to business case approval. The consultation will take place at the national level and early enough to allow meaningful input/involvement in shaping the most appropriate trial that will meet the stated objectives, prior to any business case being concluded.
Example: Joint Working Group at Rolls Royce Motors (BMW Group)
During their pay negotiations in 2018, Unite Stewards at Rolls Royce Motors (BMW Group) won a commitment from BMW to take part in a joint working group looking at the future of automation. The group will be managed by, and report into, the main Company Council. It gives workers a say on the introductions like the self-scanning glove that BMW Group want used on the production line.
Dave Elson, Unite convenor at the company says “you wear the glove and it has a barcode in it, it picks up once the parts are done and automatically downloads everything, it saves a process but it also cuts a job out. We’ve spoken to company about a new technology agreement so that, as a union, we can understand better the impacts of this technology and the impacts on the industry…[we want] to protect our members and their jobs”
Unite recommends that ideally any new consultation structure with an employer around new technology should be formal and created by agreement, as this is the best way of guaranteeing that the discussions occur prior to implementation, and that workers get adequate time to prepare and respond to any plans. Unite suggests that reps aim for four separate elements:
- a separate New Technology Joint Negotiating Committee with the employer;
- a New Technology Sub-Committee composed entirely of reps to discuss technology issues and disseminate the findings to the workforce;
- dedicated New Technology Reps entitled to facility time who specialise in workers’ issues relating to New Technology and sit on the New Technology Sub-Committee; and
- a New Technology Fund set up by the employer to fund the work of the Sub-Committee.
The lack of formal bargaining apparatus around new technology does not preclude union involvement in dialogue with employers. There are examples of employers from across many different industrial sectors that have engaged in partnership working around the impact of new technology. Whilst this often means that workers have less say prior to the introduction of a new technology, and are therefore not as empowered as a collective agreement would make them, collaborative structures can help to facilitate any transitions, plan strategies for training and/ or redeployment and allow workers to voice concerns and give feedback.
Example: Partnership working on new technology in the finance industry
The financial services sector has been hit particularly hard by automation. However, the sector also has many examples where employees are included in the discussions around technology changes.
Tim Rose, General Secretary of the Nationwide Group Staff Union, says: “Over recent years we’ve seen more services being delivered to customer digitally – online and mobile banking. The uptake of these services has increased during the pandemic as people have stayed away from visiting branches. This then increases the pressure on the viability of the branch network and traditional branch based jobs. With customer footfall in decline how do you make a branch sustainable? We’re currently working with Nationwide to understand what other work can be undertaken by branch employees and to look ways of working more flexibly to make these jobs viable – but we’re probably talking about a gradual change over a 2-3 year period.”
Insurance company Zurich insurance also has a number of structures where big upcoming national changes can be discussed with Community union and workers’ voice incorporated. It has a National Partnership Council, a UK employee consultation board which has an organisational change subgroup and the potential to create ‘business specific Project Change Groups’ where specific changes can be discussed.
Example: Opportunities for workers to give feedback
Where new technology has already been introduced, unions can work to ensure that there is continuing dialogue around how it is impacting workers.
In Scottish housing company Wheatley Group, new caseload software was introduced to housing officers, replacing the need to fill in paperwork on site with the use of iPads. Although the technology was generally seen as an improvement, there were also many challenges with it, particularly around features it lacked and the changes to working practices. UNISON rep Paul Stuart was able to feedback on these issues, and suggest further processes that the workers would like to see automated in the future through the union-employer consultative committee.
In ASDA Normanton, the GMB union has helped to set up ‘circles of improvement’ where workers can communicate with management around technological innovations on site. In an interview with the Commission on Workers and Technology a manager said: “the stronger the relationship we have with the union, the better we’ve become and we make far quicker decisions in enhancing our depot”.