Cross-border mobility of workers increases union cooperation

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October and November 1999 have seen a number of examples of increased cooperation of various kinds between trade unions in Portugal and their counterparts in other EU Member States, often reflecting increased cross-border mobility of workers. We look at the cases of textiles, nursing, fishing and banking.

Events in October and November 1999 indicate that cross-border cooperation involving Portuguese trade unions has increased. Portuguese unions in some sectors have been intensifying their efforts to establish contacts with their counterparts from nearby Member States, such as Spain and France.

Textiles

Textile workers' unions in northern Portugal and Galicia in Spain are together pushing for tax measures to control the illegal practice of Spanish firms contracting Portuguese workers under illegal conditions, whereby they are paid by the piece or by the metre. The widespread use of this practice makes for less secure working conditions in Spanish enterprises in the border regions, and may involve home working. The wages these Portuguese workers earn are much higher than usual - double the normal, according to the unions - but the employers do not have to pay taxes or social security contributions that would normally be due under Spanish law.

Cooperation between the unions has also included presenting joint projects to the European Union that are geared toward keeping the textile industry in the region viable and modernising production units. They also demand financial support in areas such as design. The goal is to boost the national textile industries, which have been losing ground in terms of competitiveness and market penetration of clothing products, and in terms of the skill level and productivity of the workforce. The unions recognise that the textile industry cannot survive solely on the basis of cheap labour.

The cooperation between unions occurs through Uniões, a geographical-based organisation of workers bringing together unions affiliated to Spain's Comisiones Obreras (CC.OO) and Portugal's Confederação Geral dos Trabalhadores Portugueses (CGTP). There is also a Galicia/Northern Portugal Interregional Trade Union Council that collaborates with the EU's European Employment Service (EURES) (PT9802167N).

Spanish unions state that the current situation of illegal mobility makes collective bargaining difficult in Spain, and that job insecurity has increased due to the rise in the level of temporary employment in the region from 32.8% to 48%.

Nurses

Nurses are another group that has been involved in cross-border cooperation. Spanish nurses have been coming to work in Portugal for some time now. The central region section of the Portuguese Nurses' Association (Ordem dos Enfermeiros) has met with the Cáceres branch of the Colégio Oficial de Enfermaria, a Spanish nurses' organisation, to improve cooperation and broaden the geographical area it currently covers. This regional cooperation will be expanded to include nurses' trade unions and regional organisations. Several dozen Spanish nurses are already members of the Portuguese Nurses Association. A protocol is due to be signed, covering:

• developing joint initiatives in the healthcare field;

• making more efficient use of available resources;

• promoting institutional and cultural exchange; and

• contributing to the professional development of the partners involved, making it possible for Portuguese nurses to pursue master's and doctoral degrees in Spain.

Fishing

There are currently a large number of Portuguese fishing industry workers who have gone to work in northern Spain and in France, receiving three to four times the salary they would receive in Portugal, where the fixed element of pay has not been updated in the last 30 years, according to the unions (PT9706122F). The workers also enjoy other perks, such as more holidays. On the down side, these workers often find themselves in employed under illegal conditions, with no job security and no social security protection. These workers are typically unaware of the labour rights. Therefore, the Union of Northern Fishery Workers (Sindicato dos Trabalhadores da Pesca do Norte) has signed a protocol with Spain's CC.OO to provide legal advice to the workers, and also maintains increasingly close contact with workers and unions in France.

Banking workers

The United Union Front of Iberian Banks (Frente Sindical Unida dos Bancos Ibéricos), is a group made up of unions operating in Spanish and Portuguese banks operating in France, bringing together Portuguese and Spanish representatives of the French union organisations CFTC, CGT and FO. The banks involved are Caixa Geral de Depósitos, Banque Franco-Portugaise, Banco Pinto e Sotto Mayor, Banco Português de Investimentos, Banco Popular Comercial, Banco Mello, Banco Bilbao e Viscaya and Banco Santander Central Hispanno. The group met at the beginning of November 1999 to discuss:

• plans for the new collective agreement for the French banking sector (FR9907102N). The Association of French Banks (Association Française des Banques, AFB) has given notice of termination of the agreement currently in effect from the end of 1999; and

• the increase in mergers involving Iberian banks, where this trend is considered to be particularly marked in EU terms, with the loss of at least 1,000 jobs in Portuguese banks in France.

The organisation met recently with AFB in France to discuss the current collective bargaining situation.

A study comparing occupational categories between the Spanish and Portuguese systems prompted meetings early in November to discuss this issue.

Commentary

Mobility of Portuguese workers to other Member States is becoming more apparent in terms of union activity. Cooperation between unions centres around competition between labour markets. Interventions focus on defending new interests in a labour market that is increasingly widely based, seeking to bring about adjustments through cooperation between workers in different areas. Cooperation is designed to increase solidarity, which simultaneously allows for improved efficiency of the Member States and their economies through better use of available labour, while at the same time providing better conditions for workers in terms of social security and equal employment opportunities, and contributing toward improving skill levels. Thus, through more egalitarian intervention, imbalances can be avoided, facilitating the opening up of a broader and more diversified labour market. Furthermore, the different national systems of industrial relations can be brought closer together through discussion of new institutional arrangements. (Maria Luisa Cristovam, SEU)