workplace relations with collective bargaining at its heart = advantages for workers, employers and society
The launch event on 26 September was held in Brussels and counted several Members of the European Parliament, as well as representatives of the European Commission, the Finnish Presidency, European employers’ associations and trade union representatives from all over Europe amongst its participants.
Amongst the reasons for the campaign, industriAll Europe underlines that strengthening collective bargaining is a key to higher pay and better working conditions.
Luc Triangle, industriAll Europe’s General Secretary, affirms: “Over the past decades, collective bargaining has been eroded throughout Europe. Following the crisis which began in 2008, collective bargaining was consciously attacked, by both national governments and European institutions, as a means to lower wages and restore profitability. The increase in individual contracts has left many workers unable to stand up for themselves and led to a rise in precarious work and in-work poverty. “This has led to a vicious cycle where lower bargaining coverage undermines the power to act collectively and to improve conditions for all workers in society. This also erodes social cohesion and now threatens the future of our social-security systems, as workers can no longer afford, and employers no longer have to, contribute sufficient to ensure adequate protection.”
Luc Triangle concludes: “Our campaign will clearly demonstrate the advantages for workers, employers and society, of a model of workplace relations with collective bargaining at its heart. This means strong trade unions and employers willing to sit around the table. Together at Work will show the way forward and identify the measures needed to support collective bargaining.”
Manfred Anderle, Chairman of industriAll Europe’s Collective Bargaining and Social Policy Committee, says:“The main objective of the campaign is to demonstrate the positive impact of collective bargaining on quality of life, economic stability and social cohesion. Each month, we will focus on a different set of messages aimed at workers, employers, young people and others. By telling real stories about working people, their struggles and their jobs, we hope to highlight the concrete benefits that trade unions bring through negotiations with employers.”
These messages will be disseminated throughout industriAll Europe’s 181 trade union affiliates in 38 European countries - representing 7 million working men and women across supply chains in manufacturing, mining and energy sectors across Europe - through a combination of video and print material for use in workplace action and social media engagement.
For more information please visit the “Together at Work” campaign website: togetheratwork.eu
The launch event of the campaign in the news and on affiliates’ information sites: