Trade unions work for the future

Bulgaria’s Confederation of Independent Trade Unions held its seventh congress in Sofia in May 2012. The country’s Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, and other leading government members attended the opening session. Almost 700 delegates confirmed the acting President, Plamen Dimitrov, in his post with a clear majority. A five-year plan was adopted and its goals include a 25% average pay rise, fairer taxes for the low-paid and investment in vocational education.

Background

Bulgaria’s Confederation of Independent Trade Unions (KNSB-CITUB) held its seventh ordinary congress in May 2012, shortly after celebrations to mark International Labour Day had adopted the theme of fair and decent pay. The same issues were taken as the theme for the congress, and delegates discussed labour costs and how payment systems can contribute to a fairer assessment of individual contributions.

Among the 697 delegates were leaders of branch unions, experts, scientists, academics and representatives of government agencies. There were also a number of top-level international delegates including Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), and Bernadette Segol, General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC).

Five-year programme approved

A draft document, New growth, quality employment, fair income and social security 2012–2017 (in Bulgarian, 936Kb PDF), was approved, highlighting KNSB-CITUB’s twin goals for the next five years:

• at least a 25% rise in average wages over the next five years as employment recovers from the financial crisis;

• an increase in the relative share of labour compensation – in other words, in the workforce’s share of national income.

Main points of new programme

The main points of the confederation’s five-year programme address the following conclusions reached by delegates.

• Changes in economic structure, labour, industrial relations and representation of interests require new organisational forms to strengthen trade union organisation, and that unions need a wider appeal to attract new supporters and members such as the self-employed, unemployed and students. Consolidation of the 35 fragmented, and sometimes overlapping, branch structures and organisations in the confederation should be speeded up.

• A new type of economic growth based on quality and new jobs (including ‘white’ and ‘green’) is needed due to increased domestic demand created by rising incomes, consumption and investment. Macroeconomic policies should not be an end in themselves in terms of monetary stability and discipline, but must carry with them the financial tools and approaches for combating poverty and social exclusion.

• A new, fairer tax system is needed to reduce social inequality. This includes greater state involvement in basic income and tax redistribution; free access to services such as education and healthcare; financial sustainability of social security systems with adequate replacement income; and improved transitions between employment status, education, unemployment and retirement.

• Investment in human capital is the foundation of the knowledge economy, which places new responsibilities on individuals, employers and trade unions. Reforms are needed in secondary and higher education, and vocational education, through the broad application of continuing vocational training and lifelong learning. Particularly important is the creation of sectoral funding for vocational education and training.

• It is essential to improve the role of collective bargaining and to achieve greater inter-company flexicurity, to develop sectoral social dialogue and to participate actively in European social dialogue. Further bilateral cooperation agreements with trade unions in other European countries is needed for mutual protection of the rights and interests of mobile workers within the single European labour market (agreements have been signed in Cyprus, Germany, Greece and the UK).

Commentary

Strong support of the KNSB-CITUB policy and its future leadership was expressed by Sharan Burrow of the ITUC and Bernadette Segol of the ETUC, which brought much media coverage. In their address to congress delegates, they said that ‘social Europe’ cannot be put at risk, and that the world needs more justice and solidarity.

However, ongoing outbreaks of social tension in Bulgaria suggest that in the years to come, the union will work in a more critical political and economic environment.

Lyuben Tomev, ISTUR