At its 32nd congress in November 2003, France's CFE-CGC trade union confederation, which represents managerial and professional staff, discussed a medium-term strategy based on a 'new industrial relations model' and 'added value trade unionism'. Jean-Luc Cazettes and Jean-Louis Walter were re-elected as president and general secretary.
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At its 32nd congress in November 2003, France's CFE-CGC trade union confederation, which represents managerial and professional staff, discussed a medium-term strategy based on a 'new industrial relations model' and 'added value trade unionism'. Jean-Luc Cazettes and Jean-Louis Walter were re-elected as president and general secretary.
On 6-7 November 2003, the General Confederation of Professional and Managerial Staff-French Confederation of Professional and Managerial Staff (Confédération française de l’encadrement-Confédération générale des cadres, CFE-CGC), held its 32nd congress near Paris. Over 600 delegates gathered to discuss their organisation (one of France's five nationally representative trade union confederations) and the problems facing managerial and professional staff.
Since its previous congress in 1999 (FR9906194N), CFE-CGC has reached a wider public and recorded significant gains in a number of elections among employees. A case in point was progress made in the December 2002 elections of employee representatives on joint industrial tribunals (conseils de prud'hommes) (FR0301107F). Nevertheless, the union confederation’s results in works council elections have put these gains into perspective (FR0311102N). While CFE-CGC remains the best supported union in the works council electoral college for managerial and professional staff, it has seen its support start to fall. Nevertheless, CFE-CGC has announced a growth in the number of members (to 140,000) - up by 14% on 1999 figures - as well as an increasingly young membership.
The current CFE-CGC leadership team, under the presidency of Jean-Luc Cazettes, has modernised its communication policy, by making intensive use of new tools such as the internet and intranet, and by updating presentation techniques ('show-like' meetings , use of 'media-ready sound bites' etc). It has also hardened its policy towards employers and governments over the past few years. For example, it: successfully cooperated with other trade union confederations in demanding special consideration for management and professional sector under the government’s 35-hour working week initiative in 1999 (FR9911118N and FR9912122N); demonstrated (short-lived) disagreement with the employers’ organisations during negotiations in 2000 over the UNEDIC unemployment insurance system (FR0007176N and FR0010195F); and refused to sign a February 2001 intersectoral agreement on supplementary pensions (FR0103136N). This strategy appears to have been effective in stemming the confederation’s decline.
The 32nd congress was an opportunity for CFE-CGC to develop the outline of a medium-term strategy capable of setting a 'new course' for the confederation. Mr Cazettes put forward two major policy thrusts - the creation of a 'new industrial relations model' and the development of a plan to 'add value' to union membership. The industrial relations model advocated by CFE-CGC is to be achieved through the negotiation - in particular with employers - of a 'social engagement contract' that would place employees, and more especially management and professional staff, at the heart of companies and society in general. 'Adding value' to union membership means developing new services and offering greater assistance for members in the form of insurance, legal aid, counselling etc.
The congress also enabled CFE-CGC to express its strong opposition to the government's current proposals for social dialogue and collective bargaining reform (FR0311101N). The confederation, criticising the current process as 'bolshevik', threatened to withhold its signature from any future agreements on these issues, unless significant amendments are forthcoming. Despite this show of dissent, Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin was keen to address the congress, reminding delegates that 'professionally speaking, he had been born into the management family'.
The CFE-CGC congress re-elected Mr Cazette and Jean-Louis Walter as president and general secretary respectively.
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