Social dialogue & conflict resolution mechanisms

Social dialogue and conflict resolution mechanisms in the acceding countries: Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia

Prague, 14-16 January 2004

Workshop participants

Willy Buschak A graduate in history and philosophy (Ruhr Universität Bochum), holder of an M.A. and PhD in history, Willy Buschak worked as a researcher on a number of projects dealing with social history and history of trade unions in Europe and Latin America. In 1987 he was appointed national officer in the central administration of the Trade Union of Food, Beverages and Restaurant Workers (NGG), based in Hamburg, responsible for codetermination and foreign workers. In 1991 he was elected Confederal Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), based in Brussels, responsible for democratisation of the economy, health and safety at the workplace and research. In 1995 his brief was extended to include environment and information society. In 2000 he took over, in addition to his political responsibilities, the responsibility for all administrative, financial and staff matters of the ETUC. Throughout his academic and professional career, he has published numerous books and essays, his most recent being “Dreams of Europe and the globalisation. A biography of Edo Fimmen” (in German, Essen 2003).

Ludovít CZÍRIA , PhD: After finishing his work in industry he started to work for the Czechoslovak Labour Research Institute in Bratislava in 1971. Since 1992 till 2003 continued with research activities for the successor organisation - the Research Institute of Labour, Social Affairs and Family in position of the deputy director and research project manager in Industrial Relations area. During the last ten years he participated in several international projects on Industrial Relations issues and conducted several nation-wide projects in Slovakia. As a national expert he participated in Phare and ILO projects focussed on development of social dialogue and tripartism in Slovakia. Since 1993 he is working as associated lecturer for Industrial Relations and Change Management courses at the Faculty of Management of the Comenius University. He is a member of the European Trade Union Institute expert network for collective bargaining in Europe. Since May 2002 he is participating in European Foundation’s project as the head of the Slovak National Centre for the European Industrial Relations Observatory. Regularly participates at the international conferences and workshops and contributes to internationally published books on Industrial Relations.

Daiga ERMSONE is the Director of Labour market research, consulting and training centre Ltd.. She holds LL.M. in International and European Law, Riga Graduate School of Law (2001) and LL.B., Faculty of Law, University of Latvia (1990). Academic interests include labour law, social security law, social and economic rights, issues of non-discrimination.

Gražina GRUZDIENE is a graduate of Kaunas Technical University. She has attended numerous seminars and conferences on social, economical and labour issues organized by the ILO, EU, ICFTU, ETUC, OECD, trade unions and other NGOs. She is President of the Lithuanian food producers' trade union and a member of the National Tripartite Council. She has participated in the establishing of free trade unions, in the creation of new labour laws and social partnerships, in the instilling of collective negotiations systems and the propagation of ILO conventions in Lithuania. Between 1996 and 2002 she held the position of Vice-President of the Lithuanian trade union unification. She has provided guidance for educational projects with foreign partners (EU PHARE, ACCESS, etc.). She is one of the initiators for the establishment of the Educational Support Fund of the Lithuanian Trade Union Unification. She is a member of the Commission for Lithuanian trade unions integration into the EU. She has experience of international work, seeking for the recognition of Lithuanian trade unions and bilateral contacts. In 1990/1991 she was the expert for social affairs in the National Committee of Lithuanian food industry workers' trade union. She has also worked in the brewery "Vilniaus Tauras". She has organizational abilities, ability to work in a team, consistency and a sense of humour.

Peter J. HURTGEN , is the 15th Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). Nominated by President George W. Bush in May 2002, Director Hurtgen was confirmed by the United States Senate two months later and is responsible for FMCS operations in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam. Prior to his service as the FMCS Director, Director Hurtgen served as a Member and later Chairman of the National Labor Relations Board, a position to which he was appointed by President Bill Clinton and confirmed by the Senate for a term that ran from 1997 to 2001. During that term, President Bush designated Mr. Hurtgen as Chairman of the NLRB and gave him a recess appointment on August 31, 2001 to continue serving upon the expiration of his term. Mr. Hurtgen is the co-author of several publications dealing with specialized subjects within the general field of labor law and labor-management relations, and is a Fellow of The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and a member of the National Executive Board of the United States branch of the International Society for Labor Law and Social Security.

Martti KAIRINEN holder of a PhD in law is Professor of Labour Law (since 1974) and Vice-dean (since 1999) at University of Turky, Finland. He was Chairman of Committee for Developing the Finnish Labour Market Systems (1992- 1993), Member of Committee for the Employment Contract Law (1995 - 2000), Chairman of the Finnish Industrial Relations Association (1997- 1999) and Member and vice-president of the Board for legal protection of Civil Servants (1995- 1999). Since 1991 Martti is Chairman of the Negotiating Body for the Participation issues in Finland. He is author of many books on Finnish Labour Law.

Timo KAUPPINEN is research manager in the Foundation’s group focusing on industrial relations and is in charge, together with Christian Welz, of this project on Social Dialogue and Conflict Resolution Mechanisms in the Acceding Countries. He has also been in charge of the following Foundation projects: the European Industrial Relations Observatory, EMU’s Social impacts on employment, Europeanisation of industrial relations in the new economy, European Knowledge Society Foresight for working conditions, living conditions and industrial relations. Before joining the Foundation he was working in the Ministry of Labour in Finland as research manager. In 1991 he set up a Finnish Industrial Relations Association and acted as Chairman between 1991 and 1997. He is docent in sociology at the Helsinki University.

Lenka KORCOVÁ is a graduate from the Charles University Law Faculty since 2003. She currently works for the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in the Department of Labour Law Legislation and Collective Bargaining as an official. She has also been a lawyer at a Real Estate agency and a legal assistant at a law office.

Raymond MCGEE holds an English and Economics degree from University College Dublin. He has been Director of the Conciliation Services of the Labour Relations Commission since its establishment in 1991. Prior to that, in the period 1968 to 1973 he was a laboratory technician in a chocolate factory; he then joined the Irish Civil Service (Department of Labour) in 1973. In 1977 he joined the Labour Court as a Court Clerk/Programming Officer. In 1979 he moved to the Conciliation Service (then of Labour Court) as Industrial Relations (Conciliation) Officer. He was appointed Senior Industrial Relations Officer in Labour Court in 1986 and then transferred to the Labour Relations Commission in 1991. He is married with four children and enjoys football, reading, golf and music (he has his own music programme on the radio).

Orestis MESSIOS is Officer of the Industrial Relations Service, at the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance of Cyprus. After completing his studies, receiving a bachelors degree in economics, and a masters degree in organisational analysis and behaviour, both from Lancaster University in the UK, he worked for the Cyprus Institute of Technology, coordinating and overseeing management consultancy projects for local manufacturing units. He then worked for the Industrial Relations department of the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry, actively promoting and assisting employers' interests, both in direct negotiations with the trade unions, as well as in the various tripartite bodies and technical committees that make up the industrial relations scene in Cyprus. At the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance he mediates in industrial disputes; actively participates in the process of harmonising Cyprus's labour legislation with the acquis; is responsible for the compliance of labour law with ILO conventions; monitors the implementation of the labour legislation; and actively assists in the promotion of social dialogue.

Shauna OLNEY studied law at the University of British Columbia and as a postgraduate at the University of Oxford, with a focus on industrial relations and human rights. She has been with the ILO since 1991, working in the areas of industrial relations, labour law and freedom of association. She is at present team leader of the social dialogue technical team of the InFocus Programme on Social Dialogue, Labour Law and Labour Administration. Previously she worked as a barrister and solicitor in Canada, specializing in industrial relations, labour law and human rights. She also worked at the Supreme Court of Canada. Her publications include “Collective bargaining and international obligations: The case of Canada” in Labour Education (ILO, 1999); Gender equality: A guide to collective bargaining (ILO, 1998); “Collective disputes over health and safety issues”, in ILO encyclopaedia of occupational health and safety (ILO, 1998); Unions in a changing world: Problems and prospects in selected industrialized market economy countries (ILO, 1996).

Lena SKIÖLD , who started out as a newspaper reporter and then a press secretary in the Swedish parliament, has worked with information and co-ordination in international projects since 1997. The Work Life – Quality in Work project, running from 1997 to 2001, involved a large gathering of knowledge in the fields of labour market, work organisation and work environment. In the Work Life and EU Enlargement Project, the aim of which is to facilitate the candidate countries’ accession to the European Union through practical projects, Lena Skiöld is co-ordinator of projects and programmes as well as head of information.

David THALER is a Commissioner with the International & Dispute Resolution Services Division of the U.S. Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, where he mediates disputes in the areas of employment discrimination, wage & hour law and collective contract negotiations. Mr. Thaler has also trained officials from several U.S. and foreign government agencies in Alternative Dispute Resolution and conflict management, and currently administers several international programs for FMCS, including programs in Argentina, Mozambique, Colombia, Peru and an initiative in the Asia Pacific region. Mr. Thaler has authored several publications relating to workplace issues, including The APEC Handbook on Strengthening Governmental Conciliation Institutions (Co-Author) (2003), The APEC Best Practices Tool Kit for Labor-Management-Government Cooperation (2002), Successful Practices in Human Resources Development in the Workplace: Contributions from Labor-Management and Government (Contributing Author) (1999), Main Issues in Codes of Conduct and International Labor Standards in US-EU Bilateral Cooperation (Symposium Report) (1998),and Investing in Tomorrow’s Workforce: Worldwide Best Practices in Workforce Development (Contributing Author) (1998). Prior to joining FMCS, Mr. Thaler practiced employment and commercial litigation in New York City from 1993-96, during which time he handled cases involving employment-related statutes such as the Fair Labor Standards Act and Title VII. He holds a Master of Public Policy from Harvard University (1998), a Juris Doctorate from New York University (1993) and a BA, summa cum laude, in International Relations and Spanish from Tulane University (1990) and is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese.

Fernando VALDÉS DAL-RÉ is a Doctor of Law from the Universidad Complutense in Madrid. Former Professor of Labour Law at the Universities of Salamanca and Valladolid, he is currently Professor of Social Security at the Universidad Complutense in Madrid, and Director of the Department of International Labour Relations at the Complutense Institute of International Studies (ICEI). He has been a lawyer at the Constitutional Court (l983-l985), Director General of the State Legal Department (1986-l990) and State Councillor during the same period. President of the Commission responsible for drafting the Revised Text of the Labour Procedure Act (l989-l990), he has also participated in several committees of experts (Revised Text of the Social Security Act and reform of the Trade Unions’ electoral regulations). He is a former President of the National Consultative Committee on Collective Agreements (1993-1996). He has acted as an advisor to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), and to other international organisations and governments. An expert on the European Union, he has collaborated in the drafting of the Bosch report on labour market flexibility (1994) and has headed the study on comparative analysis of European systems of mediation and proposal for a mediation mechanism at European level (2002).

Assistant editor of the magazine Relaciones Laborales [Labour Relations] (Madrid), he has published some two hundred and fifty articles on his specialised subject area, in particular on collective bargaining, termination of work contracts, employment law and labour procedure.

Kees VOS has a university degree in industrial sociology and a PhD in social sciences. After working as a research assistant in social sciences he started to work at the Dutch ministry of social affairs and employment in 1970. Since then he has held different posts in the ministry in areas such as workers' participation, safety and health, international social policy.

He has been member of several national and international administrative boards and committees, co-editor of scientific magazines and (co-)published books and essays on industrial relations, working conditions, national and international social policy. Latest publications deal with the Dutch Poldermodel (2002) and the European Convention (2003).

Christian WELZ studied law and political sciences at the universities of Bonn, Freiburg, Aix-en-Provence and Strasbourg. Having worked as a researcher and lecturer at the University of Freiburg and the Institut für europäische Politk in Bonn, he was appointed professor in EC law at the Universities of Applied Sciences in Kehl and Offenburg. Before joining the Foundation in November 2001, he was in charge of the EU unit at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Augsburg. As a research manager in the IR team, Christian works on the following projects: European employment and industrial relations glossaries (EMIRE), financial participation, the quality of industrial relations and the present project on social dialogue and conflict resolution mechanisms in the acceding countries.