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Shaping the post pandemic recovery by securing interests of working people: new trade union strategies for the new forms of employment

From 22 to 24 June 2022 took place in Sofia, Bulgaria a seminar about “Shaping the post pandemic recovery by securing interests of working people: new trade union strategies for the new forms of employment”, organized by PODKREPA CL (Confederation of Labour PODKREPA), in cooperation with EZA and funded by the European Union.

55 representatives of workers’ organisations from Bulgaria, France, Italy, Romania, Poland, Cyprus and Austria participated in the seminar.

The seminar’s objective

  1. To provide space for discussion and strategic thinking about the post-Covid world of work, exploring how to strengthen social dialogue and collective negotiation to protect workers in all forms of employment.
  2. To evaluate the impact of the pandemic on working people and to exchange on the involvement of trade unions in the implementation and monitoring of national recovery plans to save jobs, to improve working conditions and to reinforce social protection;
  3. To facilitate the exchange of views on challenges in the context of the post pandemic recovery and role & involvement of national social partners.
  4. To contribute to a new trade union progressive agenda to better protect working people in all forms of employment, proving the necessary support during the green transition.

Description of the seminar

  • The forum started with key note messages on the role of the trade unions and social partners to guarantee an inclusive recovery that leaves no one behind. 
  • The opening session was followed an academic presentation “The EU policy responses and instruments to tackle negative impacts of the pandemic on labour markets, on employment and living standards”..
  • According to the program, the second module includes:

- Expert’s presentation “The future of work and skills: how they impact economy and labour markets- DIGITAL PODKREPA Project”

Reflexion and debate on trade unions actions in support of working people in the post-covid world of work.

  • Third and fourth modules we dedicated to national interventions from participating organizations on how to support better working people: national experiences & practices on effective trade unions involvement in post-pandemic recovery
  • Summary “Building recovery and resilience, securing employment rights and efficient protection of labour to all workers”.
  • On the third day the attention was turned to the actual topics of just transition and job’s transformation with regard to the necessary training and requalification of workers
  • Round table: ”A solidarity action plan for all workers”.to exchange on trade unions strategies to cover the new forms of employment
  • Brainstorming session “Building up with confidence” with focus on the necessity for a new culture of partnership., on the possibilities to increase campaigning capacity. And on the way to improve bargaining power.
  • Module for evaluation. summary and conclusions.

Key ideas

  • The pandemic exposed the deep inequalities within and among EU countries, not only in terms of impacts but also in terms of the uneven road to recovery. Because, on the journey to recovery EU countries are submitted to new, multiple shocks. To the moment, again only working people are to pay the hardest price: staying confronted not only with employment transformation and uncestainity, but with huge prices‘ increase, especially of food products and energy, dramatically loosing purchasing power, plunging into poverty.
  • Economic recovery will require significant public investment not only in training and skills - the road to sustainable recovery is to create quality jobs, guarantee just transition ans reduce inequality. Those are serious challenges and concrete actions, implemented with consencus in the society, are needed to advance.  In that sense, representatives of workers, employers and governments must jointly address those challenges in a fair and sustanaible manner.
  • The recovery presents an opportunity to transform the current neoliberal, export-oriented, and debt-driven development framework to one that reconstructs the economy towards resilience and sustainability, promotes income-led economic growth and tackles the climate crisis. Here, the strengthening of the involvement of trade unions in the setting and updating of social policy and of measures in support of employment is very important. Social dialogue is the connecting link to conceive different interest, to establish consensus and to advance with the implementation of National Plan for Recovery and Resiliense. Working people will made the transformation and the recovery possible, excluding their orgarizations/representatives from this process will only lead to new tensions and mistakes. The policy responses will thus no longer be seen as temporary and contingent but reinterpreted as structural solutions to longstanding deficiencies
  • To secure the recovery, it is crucial to have an well qualified workforce. So, active labour market policies such as training, reskilling, and upskilling, are crucial to job creation and economic reconstruction. However, such policies   may be effective only when they are result from dialogue and negotiation. In that respect, national government must promote and facilitate dialogue and consultations between all levels of decision making, especially with youth and at the sectoriel level.
  • In those difficult times trade unions must have the courage to tell workers the truth for the challenges ahead. Only in such way trade unions will preserve their influence at workplace and to come up with good ideas for a green, a digital and a fair recovery, giving workers the skills, they need to navigate and to succeed in an evolving labour market.
  • This is the moment for trade unions to mobilize and to push for social dimension into recovery.

New forms of work must not become synonyms of a precarious existence, or health and safety challenges, or inadequate access to social protection. New forms of work must come with equal rights.

  • The trade union involvement in the implementation of the NPRR must match the scale of the crisis -- large-scale, coordinated and comprehensive to deliver concrete and tangible results to working people.
  • Services provided to trade unions members has to be reformed and improved – vocational concseiling, labour clubs for young workers, new formula to organize fragmented and on-line employees should be introduced.
  • One of the great challenges of the green transition is deeply linked to the principle of solidarity. Indeed, climate change is rooted in a triple inequality: richer people produce more greenhouse gases, poorer people suffer more from the impact of pollution, and access to environmentally friendly life choices is not available to the poorest people. It is therefore essential that trade unions bring the question of solidarity and fairness into the process. We have to ensure that the transition to a green economy does not create more division in society and will become a collective effort of bringing people together, increasing their well-being.

Conclusions and recommendations

  • After four decades of championing globalization, it is clear that the best way forward for the EU would be to show greater solidarity, to give certainty to people and to offer stability better absorb shocks.
  • EU faces common threats, both geopolitical and environmental, for which it needs common actions The convergence in the EU is mostly economic, which leads to increased inequality and social disparities between member states. The EU faces disparities in developing of social legislation, the situation in the income`s growth, pension`s policy improving, education system and labor market development. Socioeconomic convergence must become one of the most important targets to be achieved by trade unions in support job creation, competitiveness, economic growth, improved quality of life and modernizing social protection.
  • EU policies must be re-orientated towards ordinary citizens:  economic recovery and green transition may be effectively addressed only through a social change towards a society based on the principles of democracy, social justice, solidarity and sustainability.
  • The inclusive, resilient and sustainable jobs and recovery plan must be implemented only through meaningful and constructive social dialogue among trade unions, employers, and government representative. The involvement of trade unions s in policy-making can ensure that the jobs and recovery plans are responsive to the situation and needs of working people.
  • First key challenge for trade unions is to succeed to make decent wages agenda a public policy objective, because only quality employment will help to reduce inequalities and poverty.
  • Second key objective is to find-out appropriate trade unions tools to support workers in their moving from different types of work and workplaces. Here, we must propose creative vision on how to better represent interest of workers, especially of the younger generation.
  • Successful strategy for the future hinge on partnership – trade union activities must focus mostly on mediation, then on mentoring.
  • In 21st century trade unions have to re-shape their organizational and operational mechanisms and to move to mobile. Embracing technology and engaging with the new nature of employment we must bring workers together, in such way we will avoid risks of fragmentation, atomization and disempowerment of working people.

The change of trade union culture will start the transformation – online organizing by sharing information with colleagues, labour advocacy groups, digital consultative possibility, social innovators, network with experienced tutors – all those are way to start the renewal of workers organizations.