Balancing the needs of Europe’s ‘working’ classes

Date: 28/04/05

Two MEPs give sharply opposing views on the importance of trade unions for European policymaking

Unions may come to regret their short-termism further down the line, says Toine Manders

The dilemma facing trade unions in Europe at the moment is very similar to the dilemma facing national politicians.

One the one hand - in the long term - national politicians are very much aware of the benefits that an economically vibrant European Union with flexible labour markets can bring for their own countries. On the other hand - in the short-term - they also want to get elected and they know that achieving a strong union might require sacrifices that may not be popular with the voters. They have a difficult choice between doing what is right and doing what is popular.

The same is true for the trade unions. Unions play a very big role in the European policymaking process. Now, more than ever, even despite their declining membership, they are present on both the European and the national level. They influence enormously the way of thinking of their members and of citizens more generally.

Take, for example, their involvement in the debate about the constitution or how they have been active in the debate over the services directive. In these areas, the unions are doing exactly what they are set up to do - they use their position and their influence to push the political debate in a particular direction that accords with the views of the members.

But the problem is that the goals of the trade unions, just like for the national politicians, are a little bit contradictory. Nowhere is this more evident than in the case of the Lisbon Strategy. If we want to achieve our Lisbon goals, then every expert teaches the same thing - we need more flexible labour markets. Unions understand this very well. So, on the one hand they support the Lisbon goals because they want the EU to be strong and our economy to be competitive compared to China, the US and India. On the other hand, when we are in an economic standstill, as we are at present, their main goal is to protect their own members and to look after their short-term interests. The unions are therefore being pulled in two different directions and their rhetoric reflects this. At the moment, when the economy is faltering, they want to be able to say to their members that they are protecting their jobs by protecting the labour markets. But they also know that they also have to support the policies put forward in the Lisbon Strategy, because achieving an economically vibrant union is the only way that we will be able to safeguard jobs in the future. The short-term and the long-term require the trade unions to take opposite positions.

Now that the membership of trade unions in many countries is declining, they have been forced to adopt the short-term position more and more. We have recently experienced long periods of economic growth in Europe and when the economy is running along smoothly it is harder for unions to attract members because people do not see as much need for them. So the unions have to do something to show that membership is necessary and often what they do is to warn people about upcoming dangers. They warn people about the services directive and the Lisbon Strategy and they tell people that they should be wary of Europe because Europe is undemocratic, will cost us jobs, and will lead to more and more industries going to other parts of world where labour is cheap. But these issues are not the fault of Europe. They are the result of a globalised economy.

Of course, labour market reform in the short-term may well be painful. There will be some job losses and we must do everything that we can to ensure that these are kept to a minimum. But while the actions of many unions may look positive right now, in reality they will be negative down the line.

The unions play an important role in Europe and the benefits of social dialogue can be great. But the interests of the trade union do not always square with the interests of the European Union.

• Dutch Liberal MEP Toine Manders is a member of the Parliament's committee on internal market and consumer protection.

The trade unions are still able to unite the voices of the European working classes, argues Roberto Musacchio

Something has changed in these last years all around the world. While the dominant philosophy and behaviour of most governments in Western Europe and in the more developed countries were fully consistent with liberalism and privatisation of main activities and services of general interest, rising movement of workers, students and social representatives of large sectors of the European population engaged themselves in large demonstrations against war, in support of social rights and equity, and for peace and sustainable development.

Trade unions have been part of this movement, not only fighting against the idea of involving Europe in the war in Iraq, but also fighting for social rights at work, better wages and an economic development for Europe where human resources were not wasted and social security was improved.

The well-known acronym of the seventies "T.I.N.A" - there is no alternative - was strongly attacked by trade unions. They have created alternative perspectives, started mobilisation against the delocalisation of industries and tried to build a renewed identity of working classes fully involved in the European movement for peace.

In fact, while living conditions and unemployment rates became worse, concrete reactions from workers followed, asking all trade union representatives for a major European co-ordination against those economic policies from member states that led to the undermining of jobs. Step by step, several parliaments, for example in France, were compelled to look for better legislation to limit the damage resulting from delocalisation of both established firms and traditional productive sectors.

Just last year, in February, when discussing the controversial attempt to privatise services, the European Parliament rejected the compromise proposal issued from the conciliation committee regarding the liberalisation of port services. Trade union dockers played an essential role in this. Ordinary people living in harbour towns concerned by the risk of unemployment have too. So MEPs were obliged to take into account the union demands. A new European Commission proposal is once again on the table but awareness among dockers has now spread to those regions where the risk of privatisation was not as urgent. The debate inside and outside Parliament is now open and social and security issues should no longer be ignored.

But the most recent challenge to a Commission proposal from the Social Forum movement and the trade unions has been in the case of the Bolkestein directive concerning services in the internal market. The large demonstration held here in Brussels on 18 March witnessed to the real engagement of trade unions in the struggle to affirm the right to respect social laws and regulations wherever you are asked to work within the EU. The trade unions want to uphold current levels of social protection, which are the result of years of negotiations and general agreements between the two sides of industry not to weaken them. The proposal to introduce the country of origin principle is something unacceptable, which is based on a flawed belief in liberalisation.

The country of origin principle goes against the respect for civil and social rights: only the needs of industry are taken in account. Trade unions have stood against it and argued that this kind of exploitation cannot be accepted.

In the case of the working time directive, the trade unions proposed amendments to MEPs and demanded to be consulted and respected when conditions of life of millions of workers were under discussion. The proposal from the Commission, now expected to be voted on in a first reading in May in Strasbourg, is just one of the key issues where the trade unions are forcing European policy to be more consistent with the demands of professional and family life and closer to the need to increase jobs and improve working environments for new generations.

We as members of the GUE/NGL are fully engaged in this struggle and we believe that trade unions are able to unite the voices of the European working classes.

• Italian Communist MEP Roberto Musacchio is a substitute on the committee on employment and social affairs.

Two MEPs give sharply opposing views on the importance of trade unions for European policymaking

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