Communiqué, issue 1, 2004
Articles
- Similar perceptions of quality of life across Europe
- Higher collective bargaining levels in EU than Japan and USA
- Migration levels likely to be small, survey reveals
- Sharpening Europe's competitive edge
- Spotlight on working conditions in two sectors
- A road map for conflict resolution
- Working conditions: an international comparison
- Europe's small economies worst hit by industrial restructuring cases
- Part-time workers still experience adverse working conditions
Previous issues of Communiqué
'Industrial restructuring dominated the industrial relations landscape in 2003 with massive lay-offs across Europe, and there are no signs that this will decrease in 2004,' says Barbara Gerstenberger, new coordinator for the EMCC.
The European Restructuring Monitoring (ERM), the monitoring tool of the Foundation’s European Monitoring Centre of Change (EMCC), has reported on more than 260,000 redundancies resulting from some 600 restructuring cases across all sectors in Europe in 2003.
Laying the groundwork
The Foundation was invited to set up the EMCC two and a half years ago, in response to a proposal by the High Level Group on Industrial Change, following the massive disruptions and layoffs which resulted from the sudden closing down of the Renault plant in Vilvoorde, Belgium, in 1997. The initiative received the support of the European Parliament, the European Council, the European Commission and the Social Partners at European level. EMCC’s mission is to cast a spotlight on the economic and social changes resulting from developments and shifts in technologies, work organisation, production and business models, legislation, working practices and the labour market that drive change in the European economy.
During the preparatory phase, the EMCC has devised and put into place several valuable monitoring instruments. The European Restructuring Monitor provides regular data on restructuring cases in Europe, while the EMCC Sector Futures is a series of forward-looking articles describing the changing dynamics of a selected sector, as well as presenting future scenarios and outlining relevant policy issues. Finally, the EMCC Company Network Seminars provide a forum where all the actors involved in change, in particular those at company level, can focus on selected issues such as how to integrate older workers and how gender balance can help companies gain a competitive edge.
Towards a sectoral approach
Barbara Gerstenberger believes that in future the EMCC will focus on a smaller number of issues and approaches. 'Today we are covering too many subjects, and cater to too wide an audience,’ she says. ‘But that is because we are still experimenting. We are concentrating our present efforts on monitoring, debating, researching and applying the foresight methodology to develop future scenarios in selected sector. In five years' time, I believe we will be contributing to sectoral social dialogue'.
Outlining the future challenges for European competitiveness
The first EMCC annual conference will take place in Brussels on 28-29 April 2004. It will bring together around 100 representatives from companies, social partner organisations, EU institutions and regional authorities. The conference will include a round table at which invited experts will take a critical look at the European quest for flexible companies and an adaptable workforce. The event will also provide the Foundation with an opportunity to showcase the contribution EMCC has made over the past two and a half years to the understanding, anticipation and management of industrial change.