Thematic feature - social partner involvement in the 2003 NAP

This article examines social partner involvement in the preparation of Denmark’s 2003 National Action Plan for employment drawn up in response to the EU Employment Guidelines.

The European Union'sEuropean employment strategy (EES) has been in operation since 1997 (EU9711168F). The strategy enables the coordination of national employment policies at EU level and one of its main components has been the adoption (on the basis of a proposal from theEuropean Commission) by theEuropean Council of a set of annual Employment Guidelines setting out common priorities for Member States' employment policies. The Member States then draw up annual National Action Plans (NAPs) which describe how these Guidelines are being put into practice nationally.

Following a review of the EES undertaken in 2002 after five years of operation (EU0209204F), and proposals for its streamlining, made by the Commission in aCommunication in September 2002 (EU0210206F), the strategy has now been renewed and simplified, with a stronger focus on implementation and a new timetable. In July 2003, the Council adopted the 2003Employment Guidelines (EU0308205F), which had been proposed by the Commission in April 2003. Compared with previous years, the Employment Guidelines have been revised so as to: ensure a stronger link with EU economic policy coordination (through streamlined timetables); lay down fewer guidelines with a broader perspective; provide a medium-term time horizon in order to achieve an increased emphasis on results and outcomes; and strengthen the involvement of the social partners, local authorities and other stakeholders.

The2003 Employment Guidelines to the Member States set out three main objectives:

• full employment;

• improving quality and productivity at work; and

• strengthening social cohesion and inclusion.

While still maintaining the employment targets set at the Lisbon (EU0004241F) and Stockholm (EU0104208F)European Council meetings in 2000 and 2001, in order to achieve these three objectives the Guidelines focus on 10 policy priorities, rather than grouping a range of guidelines into four pillars, as has previously been the practice. These 10 priorities are

1. active and preventative measures for the unemployed and inactive;

2. job creation and entrepreneurship;

3. address change and promote adaptability and mobility in the labour market;

4. promote development of human capital and lifelong learning;

5. increase labour supply and active ageing;

6. gender equality;

7. promote the integration of and combat the discrimination against people at a disadvantage in the labour market;

8. make work pay through incentives to enhance work attractiveness;

9. transform undeclared work into regular employment; and

10. address regional employment disparities.

Under the revised EES, Member States still draw up NAPs setting out how the Employment Guidelines are being implemented. The NAPs present the progress achieved in the Member State over the past 12 months and the measures planned for the coming 12 months, and are thus both reporting and planning documents. The NAPs based on the 2003 Guidelines - which should have a stronger focus on implementation and the medium term - were due to be adopted in October 2003.

While national governments and public labour market authorities are mainly responsible for drawing up and implementing the NAPs, the role and the contribution of the social partners has been progressively emphasised as the EES has developed, acknowledging the fact that many issues addressed in the Employment Guidelines directly concern the social partners, and in many cases the collective bargaining process. The 2003 Guidelines include a section on'good governance and partnership' in their implementation, with Member States requested to ensure the effective implementation of the Guidelines, including at the regional and local level, and involve parliamentary bodies, social partners and other relevant actors. Good governance and partnership are seen as important issues for the implementation of the EES,'while fully respecting national traditions and practices'. With regard to the social partners, they should be invited at national level -'in accordance with their national traditions and practices'- to ensure the effective implementation of the Guidelines and to report on their most significant contributions in all areas under their responsibility, in particular concerning: the management of change and adaptability;'synergy' between flexibility and security;'human capital development'; gender equality; making work pay; active ageing; and health and safety at work. The European-level social partners at intersectoral and sectoral level are invited to contribute to the implementation of the Guidelines and to support efforts undertaken by the national social partners at all levels. As announced in theirjoint work programme for 2003-5 (EU0212206F), the European intersectoral social partners will report annually on their contribution to the implementation of the Guidelines. Furthermore, the European sectoral social partners are invited to report on their respective actions.

In October 2003, the EIRO national centres in each EU Member State, were asked, in response to a questionnaire, to outline how the social partners were involved in the preparation of their country's2003 NAP (a similar exercise was conducted in relation to the 2002 NAPs -DK0206103T). The Danish responses are set out below (along with the questions asked).

Procedural aspects

1) Which organisations did the government consult on the preparation of the 2003 NAP? Were these organisations informed in time? Did they have enough time to react?

The Ministry of Employment held meetings with, and received contributions from, the relevant actors, including other ministries, the social partners in both the public and the private sector, as well as one non-governmental organisation (NGO), in connection with drawing up the 2003 NAP. The social partner organisations were informed and consulted in sufficient time to react. The following social partner organisations were thus consulted in the Special Committee for Employment and Social Affairs (within the government's EU Committee):

• private sector employers- the Danish Employers’ Confederation (Dansk Arbejdsgiverforening, DA) and the Danish Confederation of Employers' Associations in Agriculture (Sammenslutningen af landbrugets Arbejdsgiver foreninger, SALA);

• public sector employers- the Danish Federation of County Councils (Amtsrådsforeninmgen, ARF), the National Association of Local Authorities in Denmark (Kommunernes Landsforening, KL); and

• trade unions- the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisationen i Danmark, LO), the Confederation of Salaried Employees and Civil Servants in DK (Funktionærerne og Tjenestemændenes Fællesråd, FTF), the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (Akademikernes Centralorganisation, AC) and the Organisation of Managerial and Executive Staff in Denmark (Ledernes Hovedorganisation, LH).

Apart from these organisations represented on the Special Committee, the Association of Local Government Employees' Organisations (Kommunale Tjenestemænd og Overenskomstansatte, KTO) the Danish Central Federation of State Employees (Centralorganisationernes Fællesudvalg, CFU) and an NGO, the Danish Council of Organisations of Disabled Persons (De Samvirkende Invalideorganisationer, DSI), were consulted and heard in the drawing up of the NAP. The Danish Employers' Association for the Financial Sector (Finanssektorens Arbejdsgiverforening, FA) was not consulted about the 2003 NAP.

2) If the social partners have submitted their views, are these represented in the NAP?

The views of the social partners are incorporated in the main chapters of the 2003 NAP.

3) Does the NAP include a chapter/part written by the social partners? Is the NAP a joint text? Did social partners sign the NAP?

The Ministry of Employment drew up the NAP against the background of discussions with the social partners about the Employment Guidelines. The social partners did not draw up a separate report on their implementation of the Guidelines. Instead their report has, as in the preceding years, been incorporated into the government’s NAP 2003 in section II and annex 1 - the latter consists of three chapters written by the social partners in the private sector, the regional/municipal sector and the state sector respectively.

4) What was the degree of consultation? Was the consultation important in substance or were social partners asked to say just'yes' or'no'?

The consultation was significant. The partners have an important say in Danish labour market policy , although it is directed by the government.

Matters of policy content

1) To what extent were social partners involved at national (and/or regional/local) level, as mentioned under the'good governance and partnership' part of the Employment Guidelines?

a) Was a comprehensive partnership developed or not, and why? Have there been significant tripartite arrangements in view of implementing some or all of the Employment Guidelines?

The Danish social partners play a significant role in national employment policy, being represented in relevant councils and committees and participating in the drawing up of education/training, labour market and work environment policies at the central and regional levels. The social partners are thus directly involved in the concrete setting of objectives relevant to the Employment Guidelines, as well as in the implementation of these objectives by means such as NAPs. Monitoring employment policies is also an integrated part of the Danish labour market model, involving the social partners.

The structure of the various councils managing the Danish labour market, on which the social partners are represented, has been changed with effect from 1 July 2003. The Social Council - which promoted a more socially inclusive labour market and advised the government on social policy measures related to the labour market - has been merged with the National Labour Market Council - which advised the Minister for Employment on the design and planning of all labour market activities - to create a single Employment Council which covers the whole field of employment measures. The Employment Council acts in an advisory capacity to the Minister for Employment. No changes have taken place at the regional and local levels.

The Employment Council is expected to draw up an opinion concerning the 2003 NAP, which will be added to the Plan as annex 4. The Minister of Employment has also submitted the 2003 NAP to the parliamentary European committee and labour committee with a view to them possibly submitting an opinion to be taken into consideration in connection with drawing up the 2004 NAP.

Danish employment measures are characterised by a high degree of regulation in the form of legislation and are implemented on a parallel basis by the public employment services at regional level and by the municipal authorities. A labour market reform entitled'More people into employment' approved by parliament in September 2002 (DK0210102F) is a step in the direction of a system which provides for greater coordination between the regional public employment services and the municipal administrations. It aims to create a simplified single system of measures aimed at getting unemployed people back into work, replacing the previous dual system of separate provision for those with unemployment insurance (administered by the public employment services) and those without (administered by the municipalities). The government has earmarked DKK 30 million to fund projects at'labour market centres' for the purpose of strengthening the coordination and synergy between the public employment services and municipal measures. The projects are to contribute to the development of a future system that will focus on effects and quality in the field of employment policy measures. The labour market centres are to ensure cooperation in a number of fields, including joint selection procedures, joint contact schedules, joint enterprise contacts and joint activation measures. An overall evaluation will be carried out on completion of the project in 2005.

b) How have the social partners at various levels implemented the Employment Guidelines - eg through collective bargaining, consultations, joint or unilateral actions etc - notably with regard to those aspects which are identified as their key responsibilities (where appropriate, taking into account the employment policy recommendations addressed by the EU to the Member States)? This should cover the following areas:

• Management of change and adaptability

• Synergy between flexibility and security, work-life balance

• Human capital development

• Gender equality

• Making work pay

• Inclusion and access to the labour market

• Active ageing and increase in labour supply

• Health, safety and well-being at work

The social partners have implemented various aspects of the abovementioned guidelines at sectoral and national level, mostly through joint actions or bipartite agreements. For example, LO and DA published a joint report on equal pay in their area of coverage in August 2003 (DK0309103F) and reached an agreement in January 2003 on bringing more people into work (DK0301101N). In the central state sector, the social partners are focusing on development of competences, promoting adaptablity and mobility, and active ageing. It is also important to note that the social partners are present in tripartite committees implementing the Employment Guidelines at regional and municipal level (especially regarding gender equality, making work pay, and inclusion and access to the labour market). It should be added that the revised NAP procedures and the contents of the latest Plan are so new that they can hardly be expected to have been implemented yet. The implementing measures mentioned here took place prior to the new Guidelines, but deal basically with the same topics.

2. What is the social partners’ assessment of the employment policy of the government?

The abovementioned September 2002 labour market reform was well received by the social partners, and it seems that the partners - after some reluctance - are accepting the idea of a single system of measures aimed at getting unemployed people back into work, replacing the previous dual system, though they do not agree that the municipalities should have the main responsibility. The social partners are also represented in the new Employment Council. Thus there may be said to be some form of overall consensus on employment policy, even if the trade union confederations do not agree on every detail. For instance, they disagree with the government on issues relating to the employment of older workers.

3. Are there any gaps or any insufficiencies identified by the social partners in the NAP?

The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (AC) believes that the 2003 NAP and Danish employment policy more generally does not reflecting the current rise in unemployment among professional workers, such as engineers. One of the reasons, according to AC, is the government's reduction of aid and cooperation programmes in central and eastern European countries. This concern, however, is not mentioned in the NAP, and nor are any other disagreements or gaps referred to.

Comments

Please add here any other comments on the NAP, its procedures and its implementation.

With regard to a number of of the concrete objectives of the European employment strategy, Denmark already meets the established targets. This is the case for the general employment rate and the rates for women and workers aged 55-64 years. Many of the recommendations in the EU's'Lisbon strategy' have been expressed in Danish labour market reforms since mid-1990s. There is also a tradition of tripartite dialogue on matters of labour market policy, with all parties delivering their points of view. The social partners' interest in preparing the NAP varies, but the organisations’ participation is generally high. This cannot, however, totally remove the impression that the Danish NAP mostly reports good intensions and'shows willing'. The NAP is regarded as the government’s plan. The social partners take part, but without giving the matter a very high level of attention. The Danish NAP as a whole tends more to look back at what has been implemented rather than look forward to what still remains to be done. (Carsten Jørgensen, FAOS)