A seminar on “Post-covid-19: Dialogue with the youth: new challenges in tomorrow's world of work” was held from 26-29 October 2023 in Paris, France and organised by GEPO (European Group for Worker Pastoral), in cooperation with EZA and funded by the European Union. 35 representatives of workers' organisations from Belgium, Germany, France, Spain, Luxembourg, Italy and Portugal attended the seminar.
The GEPO noted a lack of consideration of young workers in social dialogue in previous seminars. The GEPO can serve as a forum to express opinions and listen to what young European workers have to say in the presence of young leaders of the JOC (Young Christian Work). This enables young people to participate in all levels of the process, introducing them to more responsibilities and more delegations, learning with them and experiencing the effect of action over the long term.
The GEPO enables intergenerational work with the presence of both young people and elders from the worker pastoral ministry.
Covid-19 has impacted all levels of society in terms of how we communicate with others, and young people were no exception. They have felt the impact from all the recent crises (Covid-19, the war in Ukraine and the energy crisis, the situation of migrants in the European Union) and the uncertainty all these issues project onto the future.
It is essential to see how this impacts social dialogue, given that young people are accessing stable employment at a later and later stage in their lives and that they are among the most precarious workers.
The observation part, VOIR (SEE), was organised in 3 stages
- Overview of the situations for young workers
The overview of the situations for young workers perceived by the actions of the JOC turned our attention to the themes of work, basically: precarious working for young people, lack of access to housing, gender justice or equal opportunities, inadequate training, language barriers, consumption and working conditions, climate change, the migration question and racism.
Ms. Léa LIMA, Professor of Sociology at the National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts, offered some key points to help us understand the situation of young people from her perspective as a sociologist.
She emphasised the universality of the themes confronting young people, the issues addressed not only concern younger workers, but wage inequality is a reality that affects everyone, along with poor working conditions and job security and occupational health and safety.
Contrary to popular belief, young people do not question the central importance of work. The role of youth organisations is to build the rational approach to the future with young people against the backdrop of various crises.
Encounters with practical experience
We have seen and felt this building of the rationality of the future in the actual experience of a company which offers long-term unemployed people an entry and integration into the world of work. This is “13 Avenir” (13 Future), an employment agency which is part of the “Territoire” (Territory) experience with zero long-term unemployment. It establishes a presence in a district of PARIS by offering these services to residents and providing stable employment for the unemployed.
Another group of participants worked with Manon Belgrand, Head of the Youth Section at the Catholic relief organisation, Caritas France, and asked about the Young Caritas groups in France. These were young people who contact Catholic Relief for a service or assistance, and also young volunteers. Together they make decisions on various actions, thus creating a route to integration for young people. The discussions raised the question of competition between youth organisations and concluded that, if this competition does indeed exist, it is not unhealthy, as it allows young people to access volunteering in associations, whether their actions focus on a response to their situation or a desire to help the poorest sections of society. All the parties discovered a social action that contributes to social dialogue when it is communicated to decision-makers. Participants also agreed to identify commitments for shorter durations. The sharing of experience is important for movements, but must not be a straitjacket that forces us into specific forms of organisation or action.
Round-table discussions on young stakeholders
The round table brought together Miguel Schelck, head of the youth section of the FGTB (General Labour Federation of Belgium) in Brussels, Jean-Philippe Rouxel of Caritas France Catholic relief, Director of Coordination of Regions and Delegations, and Sybille Douvillez, the young Deputy General Secretary of the public square movement, responsible for mobilisation.
Their organisations create places that share practical needs and aspirations and are also a learning experience of living together and exploiting talent. The modes of action are flexible and have a swift impact and practical effect. These places enable us to share values and to review what has been learned. This often results in joint advocacy.
Structures are specific for young workers or students, both within them and for them, and when they are also integrated into the struggles of workers, they also experience specific challenges (anti-racism, insecurity month by month, etc.). For workers in the platform economy, the choice is made to approach them through adapted structures e.g. delivery/courier companies.
Young people get involved in causes with confidence; practical actions via structures adapted to young people. It is difficult to meet people in the most precarious situations, i.e. those with no safety net, and this harms democracy. We must demonstrate that young, working-class people have their place and we must remove the feeling of abandonment. Young people see that they are being asked to find their place in society. They also emphasise the need for training regarding the flow of information they receive and the need for training to provide support for what they want to do.
The speakers expressed many concerns regarding the upcoming European election year: the lack of interest of some young people in politics, a social audit of the European Union, which has favoured free trade over social progress. Their demand is to develop social issues in the interest of workers and to promote a minimum wage for all, including young people. Young people are also aware of the situation of young migrants, regardless of their legal status.
JUDGE the situation from the social teaching of the church
This deeper exploration was intended to view the contribution of the social teaching of the church from the specific perspective of young people in the encyclicals “Laudato Sì” (on the care of our shared home) and “Fratelli Tutti” (on fraternity and social friendship), and the speeches to popular movements during the meetings of 2014 , 2015 and 2016.
“Laudato Sì” demonstrates one of the signs of the fruitfulness of the link between justice and environmental protection in our vision for the future. This is an issue that is of particular concern to young people.
It is the same attitude that destroys nature and “kills” others; an attitude that refuses to consider the beauty and grandeur of nature in and of itself, which refuses to recognise humans as sisters and brothers.
“Fratelli Tutti” was published in 2020 and focused on the “common good”; one of the core principles of the social teaching of the church. For Pope Francis, the parable of the Good Samaritan remains a source of inspiration to guide our behaviour and to give meaning to our life. Hospitality and universal love open us up to a world of partners.
Does the dialogue around popular movements help us understand where to focus to enable us to think and act effectively?
The starting point for Pope Francis, which will determine what follows, is to place people at the heart of his concerns, workers in vulnerable and precarious situations, those who are victims of multiple exclusions and injustices in every work activity and in every neighbourhood. The global system has imposed the logic of gain at any price with no thought of social exclusion or the destruction of nature.
The heart of the response explores three axes: in place of the “money wall” project, the response includes three building blocks of land, work, home. The land and therefore agriculture; the home, which includes housing and town planning; work with a rejection of the culture of waste and the god of Mammon. These axes are a call to peace and ecology.
Everyone is invited to act for the good of all and with all, and the poor in particular. The fair distribution of the fruits of the earth and human labour is not just a question of philanthropy. It is a moral duty; another duty is to avoid corruption.
God has united us with all his creatures, unlike technocracy, which isolates us. Human life cannot be conceived without other creatures in a sacred, tender and humble sense of respect. We re-imagine ourselves as humbler and yet richer, instead of an autonomous, all-powerful and unlimited human being.
Results of the seminar
-This intergenerational conference demonstrated that there are many issues that require social dialogue.
-Walk together and build together. Everyone must be involved to achieve this. However, when people are in a precarious situation, they can only see their life in the short term. As leaders and managers, we are privileged young people who know already what it means to participate. We must therefore demonstrate the value of participation in social dialogue.
-The challenge is to maintain a broad vision of social dialogue within the EU, so that it is not limited to employer/union relations.
-Consider the questioning of young people in training processes not only as a problem (i.e. we don't know what to do with Generation Z) but as a source of a more global questioning about society.
-Engage in more exchanges with other countries. Because it is important to maintain links with young people, make new contacts and expand our networks.
-Approach relationships in a spirit of fraternity. The challenge is how to be a brother when you’re over 30 and want to act as a brother to young adults. This happens when we speak the language of young people.
-The opportunity to discuss specific situations, such as migration issues and seeing what proposals and feedback we receive from others. We are happy to embrace ideas that come from outside.
-Make our conclusions public. This will happen in any case through the distribution of this report by EZA.
Results of the discussions, work groups, workshops, etc.
What participants take away from working with young people and older adults:
Involve young people at all times to address these themes.
Intergenerational encounters.
Obtain different points of view.
Address young people with an approach: questioning / what do friends say / what action to take.
Allow young people to participate at all levels of the process.
Be open to more responsibilities and more delegation.
Learn to experience action over the long term.
Listen to young people both individually and collectively (as an organisation). We need an organised and structured voice for young people.
Entrust young people with responsibilities by accepting that they are beginners, and don't have to do exactly the same things as we did.
It is important that they bear responsibilities to the same degree as us, without paternalism.
Solutions that benefit all.
Approach this from a European perspective.
We must look for the ties that bind us, and not what separates us. Listen to each other.
Decisions
The first decision concerns the integration of young professionals in the GEPO bodies in the preparation of and during the conference.
The second is to promote links and exchanges between participants outside of the conferences and also with the appropriate institutions.
We must also reflect on how everyone can feel like a member of the GEPO and understand what they can bring to the organisation of movements, the training of leaders and what kind of organisational model we want to be: an organisation that coordinates joint actions or a platform that uses a tradition and contacts that brings people together who consider that interactions with people from other organisations, cultures and languages can be fruitful and can allow us to reject ingrained habits and that we develop by listening to other points of view and ways of thinking. This involves expanding the respective countries to resume contact with movements involved in both worker and popular pastoral ministry.
We have decided to hold a conference in 2024 in Germany.
The theme arose from the phenomenon of the “Great Resignation” and also from the aspirations of generation Z to achieve a work-life balance by considering how they can organise both these aspects and the meaning we give to one or the other, regardless of whether we are young workers.