Telecommunications workers make demands for new collective agreement

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In February 1999, the OME-OTE telecommunications workers union announced to the government and the OTE telecoms operator that it was seeking negotiations over a new company collective agreement at OTE. The union's demands cover economic and institutional issues, and for the first time officially contain a claim for a reduction of working time without loss of pay.

At a meeting on 26 January 1999, the Federation of Workers in Greek Telecommunications (OME-OTE) resolved to put in motion the procedure laid down by Law 1876/1990 on collective bargaining (Article 4), and call for negotiations aimed at concluding a new company-level collective agreement (ESSE) at the Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation (OTE). On 8 February, the union sent an "extrajudicial statement" and announcement of the commencement of negotiations to all competent bodies - OTE, the Ministry of Labour, and the Ministry of Transportation and Communications. In the view of OME-OTE, its framework of demands for 1999 includes pivotal claims - directed at both the government and OTE - which are "mature", "realistic" and "justified". The union states that it expects a positive response from all recipients of its announcement, and says that the present situation imposes a need for meaningful dialogue. The union also stresses that it has decided to take initiatives in defence of the real interests of OTE workers.

Demands to the government

OME-OTE opposes the incomes policy announced by the government for 1999, because it would severely reduce the real wages of its members. OME-OTE states that, in combination with successive austerity policies in recent years, this policy exacerbates the problem of workers' loss of income. The union demands real pay increases over and above inflation. The main factor which it regards as necessitated such increases - apart from non-indexation of the tax scale - is that, through a 20% increase in productivity over the last decade, OTE workers have played a key role in shaping the OTE' s strong economic position. As far as taxation policy is concerned, the OME-OTE is demanding a "fairer" national tax reform, consisting of:

• indexation of tax scales;

• increase of untaxed income to GRD 2 million per year;

• increase of the rate of taxation of profits;

• implementation of means testing without exception;

• reduction of Value Added Tax on basic consumer goods; and

• giving more weight to direct taxes in the relation between direct and indirect taxes.

OME-OTE is also calling for a meaningful dialogue to provide solutions to the problems of OTE's social insurance funds, specifically:

• release and utilisation of the assets of the OTE' s Employee Insurance Fund (TAP-OTE);

• improvements in the calculation of pension benefits; and

• decentralisation, through establishment of TAP-OTE branches at large workplaces and staffing of the Fund's offices with medical personnel.

Demands to the government and the OTE

As regards the preservation of OTE's public character, OME-OTE is demanding a stop to the sale of more shares in the company, because it claims that: OTE's five-year business plan provides for important investments through self-financing; and the rate of growth and absorption of investments does not justify seeking additional capital from other sources such as the stock market. At present, OTE is still 55% publicly owned, while 45% of its shares are owned by institutional and individual investors in Greece and abroad.

OME-OTE is seeking a reduction of the working week to 35 hours without loss of pay, which it believes should be implemented immediately due to the nature of OTE and its technological development. This is the first time that a claim for reduction of working time without loss of pay has been included as an official demand for negotiations over a sectoral collective agreement. According to the union's initial assessments, OTE lends itself to a pilot implementation of a reduction in working time, owing to its position as one of Greece's most dynamic capital-intensive undertakings, and also because of technological developments and increased productivity of labour. OME-OTE also claims that this measure can be implemented without extensive restructuring and that new jobs will be created, inasmuch as 1,115 workers opted for voluntary retirement in 1998 (with the incentive of an annual pension amounting to 10 months' pay after 32 years of service). OTE employs a total of 21,800 workers, a figure which is constantly falling (from 32,500 in 1981), and no workers have been hired since 1991. A member of the executive council of OME-OTE has pointed out that the working week for certain categories of workers, such as operators and radiotelegraphers, is already less than 35 hours.

Other demands concern: the effective functioning of the National Telecommunications Committee (EET); the development of strategic alliances with other telecommunications organisations, particularly in the Balkans; the intensification of actions to absorb with full transparency funds from the second Community Support Framework; introduction of a single tax regime for OTE in relation to other limited companies, modelled on corresponding regulations in EC countries; and a unified institutional and legislative treatment for OTE subsidiaries engaged in competitive activities, in matters of recruitment and investment.

Demands to OTE

One of the basic issues raised for discussion in negotiations over the new agreement is the creation of a new system of pay (or wage scale) for the employees of OTE and its group of companies. This wage scale, according to OME-OTE, should:

• be commensurate with the company's financial position and the contribution and competence of its personnel;

• operate within the range of wages in other telecommunications companies;

• create incentives, terms and conditions for boosting the company's productivity and competitiveness; and

• establish objective-linked criteria for additional payments made to staff.

Other demands concern financing for OME-OTE to carry out exchanges of workers and union training programmes, the reintroduction of union training to the curricula of OTE educational institutes, and the introduction of a reduced working day for parents of children with special needs.

Commentary

OTE is one of the most dynamic capital-intensive companies in Greece. As such, it achieves high levels of profitability and is one of the most competitive companies in the field of telecommunications, in the Balkans at least. The OME-OTE has presented a complete framework of demands, taking into account the company's economic position and seeking effective worker participation. Apart from preserving OTE's public character and refraining from any further flotation, OME-OTE' s two basic demands involve reducing the working week without loss of pay and creating a new system of wages. With regard to the latter, serious opposition from workers may arise concerning the introduction of productivity-linked pay. Adoption of the reduction of working time as an official demand for the sector once again highlights the importance the unions attach to what may be their principal demand for 1999 (GR9901110N). (Eva Soumeli, INE/GSEE)