Weber, Tina

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) has expressed concern about a proposal issued by the European Commission, which seeks to ensure the free movement of goods within the European Union during periods when an industrial dispute is taking place in a Member State.

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) celebrated its 25th or "silver" anniversary in February 1998 with a conference entitled "New times - new unions". The event, jointly hosted by ETUC and the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) from 5-7 February, also aimed to start a debate on the ETUC in a changing society - a debate which is set to culminate in the next ETUC congress in 1999. Speaking at the conference, ETUC president Fritz Verzetnitsch stressed how far ETUC had come, from being a "platform in search of a common denominator" to a "full trade union player" on the European stage. He also highlighted the important role played by ETUC in initiating and supporting the development of European industrial relations, involving not only the trade union leadership, but also the grassroots.

On 12 February 1998, the European Commission adopted a report on the implementation of the Council Recommendation of 31 March 1992 on childcare (92/241/EEC [1]). The Recommendation was adopted as part of the Community's Third Equal Opportunities Action Programme (1991-5) and the Commission's social Action Programme accompanying the 1989 Community Charter of the Fundamental Social Rights of Workers [2] (the "Social Charter"). Both the Third Action Programme and the Social Charter emphasised the importance of measures to enable men and women to reconcile work and family life. Such measures were to act as a means to achieve greater equality of opportunity for women and men in the labour market. The 1998 guidelines for Member States' employment policies [3], which were adopted by the Council of Ministers in December 1997 (EU9712174N [4]), also call for adequate provision to be made for the care of children and other dependants in order to enable greater equality in the labour market. [1] http://europa.eu.int/comm/sg/scadplus/leg/en/cha/c10916.htm [2] http://eurotext.ulst.ac.uk/policy/social/charter/92826097/92826toc.html#x [3] http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/elm/summit/en/papers/guide2.htm [4] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/1998-employment-policy-guidelines-adopted

In May 1997, the group of experts on "European systems of worker involvement", known as the Davignon group, after its chair, issued its report [1] (EU9705128N [2]). The group had been set up by the European Commission essentially to suggest ways of breaking the deadlock on worker involvement measures which had blocked the adoption of the European Company Statute for many years. The report set out recommendations for the information, consultation and board-level participation of employees in the European Company (SE), which were then largely taken up by the Luxembourg EU Presidency of the second half of 1997 in a new draft version of the Statute (EU9710158N [3]). [1] http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/soc-dial/labour/davignon/davien.htm [2] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/davignon-group-on-worker-involvement-publishes-recommendations [3] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/labour-and-social-affairs-council-dominated-by-preparations-for-jobs-summit

The Federation of Transport Workers' Unions in the European Union (FST) and theEuropean Community Shipowners' Association (ECSA) agreed a joint text on working time and time off aboard ship in December 1997. The approximately 128,000 EU nationals and 26,000 non-EU nationals employed in the maritime sector are among the workers excluded from the provisions of the EU Directive (93/104/EC) on certain aspects of the organisation of working time.

The European Commission has long emphasised the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME s) in job creation. The recently published 1997 annual report [1] by theEuropean Observatory for SMEs [2] shows a complex picture in terms of the employment impact of SMEs. According to the report, there are over 19 million enterprises active in the non-primary private sector in Europe (including Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland). Of these, around 99.8% fall into the EU classification of SMEs. Based on the analysis of trends between 1988 and 1997, the report suggests that during the 1990-3 recession, the decline in employment was greater in large or medium-sized companies than in SMEs, thus suggesting that larger enterprises are more vulnerable to fluctuations in the business cycle. However, employment figures in SMEs nevertheless declined to 110 million persons. The report shows that while employment remains more stable in SMEs during periods of recession, in times of economic recovery, employment growth tends to be concentrated in the larger enterprises. SMEs were found to create more jobs than large enterprises, but they equally destroy more jobs. Significantly, the net rate of employment growth tends to be the same for enterprises of different sizes. [1] http://europa.eu.int/en/comm/dg23/download/eurobsen.pdf [2] http://europa.eu.int/en/comm/dg23/guide_en/eurobs.htm

Following the special Jobs Summit [1] which took place in Luxembourg on 20-21 November 1997 (EU9711168F [2]), the European Commission adopted a final proposal for Guidelines for Member States' employment policies for 1998 [3] on 3 December 1997. The proposal, which was adopted by the Council of Labour and Social Affairs Ministers on 15 December 1997 (EU9712175N [4]), launches the European employment strategy agreed at the Amsterdam European Council meeting in June 1997 (EU9706133N [5]). These guidelines now have to be incorporated into national employment action plans drawn up by the Member States in the form of national objectives. Member States are committed to submitting these plans in time for their examination by the European Council meeting to take place in Cardiff in June 1998. The implementation of these guidelines will be monitored regularly and an annual report will be produced by the Commission. This approach draws on the existing practice of multiannual surveillance established after the December 1994 Essen summit, to monitor the implementation of the recommendation drawn up at that meeting. [1] http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/elm/summit/en/home.htm [2] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/undefined/employment-summit-agrees-limited-package-of-measures-to-combat-unemployment [3] http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/elm/summit/en/papers/guide2.htm [4] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/social-affairs-council-adopts-directive-to-implement-part-time-work-agreement [5] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/amsterdam-summit-agrees-new-draft-treaty

Meeting in Brussels on 15 December 1997, the Council of Labour and Social Affairs Ministers unanimously adopted a Directive to implement the framework agreement on part-time work [1] concluded by the Union of Industrial and Employers' Confederations of Europe (UNICE), the European Centre of Enterprises with Public Participation and of Enterprises of General Economic Interest (CEEP) and the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) on 6 June 1997 (EU9706131F [2]). This agreement aims to institute the principle of non-discrimination for part-time workers and to facilitate the development of part-time work on a voluntary basis and to contribute to the flexible organisation of working time in a manner which takes into account the needs of employers and workers. It also seeks to ensure that the equal treatment of part-time workers in terms of pay (pro rata) and working conditions is applied, unless there are "objective reasons" for differential treatment. Clause 5 of the agreement calls upon Member States to review any obstacles which may limited opportunities for part-time work and, where appropriate, to eliminate them. [1] http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/soc-dial/social/parttime_en.htm [2] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/undefined/social-partners-reach-framework-agreement-on-part-time-work

Developments in European Union (EU) and national-level policy with a direct impact on industrial relations were influenced by a number of key trends and events in 1997, many of which are set to continue to be of relevance in the policy debate in 1998:

In the context of the special Employment Summit [1] held in Luxembourg on 20-21 November 1997, the European Centre of Enterprises with Public Participation and of Enterprises of General Economic Interest (CEEP) issued an "opinion on employment policies in Europe". In the document CEEP outlines its priorities in the area of employment policy, with the aim of creating more jobs and achieving a more even balance between the economic and social aspects of the EU single market. [1] http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/elm/summit/en/home.htm