Minutes of the European Works Council platform

The topic ‘The European Works Council and reorganisation’ attracted an unexpectedly high number of interested people during the platform meeting on 17 March.
The introduction discussed the formal possibilities that the European Works Council has to influence reorganisations. Obstacles for the European Works Council include what is transnational, what is on time and what consultation means.

The guideline defines these matters far more closely, thus giving the European Works Council important handles that can already be used, for example during renegotiations or when making additional agreements in protocols for example.

During the meeting, a number of examples of such agreements were given. They show that there are European Works Councils that are already consulted in such a way that they are not far from a type of advisory right. Examples were also discussed of sometimes very elaborated plans that the European Works Council negotiated with the management until a settlement was reached to assist with reorganisations (e.g. Unilever, ABB, Schneider, Philips, Ford and GM). It is important that the European Works Council gears this kind of agreement properly to the local employee participation. The meeting also discussed the fact that during the next two years a grey area will be created by legislation since although there is a new guidelines, there are no new national European Works Council laws yet. Examples from Sappi and TNT showed how in these times you can reach agreements in the European Works Council in which the benefits of the new guidelines can also apply.

After the break the meeting turned to more practical matters. An interesting case showed how within one European Works Council there are totally different ways of handling a reorganisation. This concerns not only the difference between countries but within one country also between the delegation members. Slowly but surely companies are also learning how to play with the rules. For example there was one example in which a company now consults the European Works Council in advance about ‘proposals’ for drastic measures. However, this seems to be a play on words since the ´proposals’ were in fact decisions that had already been taken.

It became clear that the struggle to really give the European Works Council influence is a long-winded work. But he who perseveres wins. Nowadays, TNT’s European Works Council receives so-called ‘Requests for opinion’ from the central management. Practice shows that it is important to consult properly informally too. This also applies for developing a relationship of trust with the management and the grassroots, and above all also between the European Works Council members themselves. Things tend to fail if there is a lack of good internal communication.