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EU candidate countries
Ten candidate countries are hoping to become members of the EU from 2004 onwards. These are Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. Prior to accession, these countries are required to adopt and implement the ‘acquis communautaire’, which is the existing EU law. In the social and employment areas, this means that they will have to implement, amongst other laws, the European Works Councils Directive. The impact this has on HR professionals is that more multinationals will be subject to the terms of the Directive as their employees in the accession countries are counted towards the workforce size thresholds. Employee representatives from the new member states will have to be included in EWCs and special negotiating bodies. Some candidate countries have started to implement the EWC Directive. For example, Slovakia adopted implementing legislation in 2001 and Poland and Slovenia have done so this year.
EU restructuring
EU-level trade unions and employers’ organisations have asked the European Commission to wait until the outcome of a seminar to be held at the end of October before launching a second round of consultation about corporate restructuring. The aim of the seminar organised by the social partners will be to examine concrete cases in order to identify examples which could assist in managing change and its social consequences in situations of restructuring. The social partners then intend to identify specific themes in the context of the social dialogue which could be integrated into annual work programmes. One concern of the social partners is to ensure the lowest social cost in the case of restructuring leading to job losses. Aware that any change must be managed, the social partners emphasise that enterprises, workers and workers’ representatives who accept and anticipate essential evolutions are better prepared to come to terms with them.
Information and consultation
Countries in the EU are taking steps towards implementing the EU employee Information and Consultation Directive. Under the Directive, all undertakings with at least 50 employees (or establishments with at least 20 employees) must inform and consult employee representatives about business developments, employment trends and changes in work organisation. EU member states have until 23 March 2005 to comply with its requirements. In the UK the government wants to introduce legislation to establish a right to new minimum standards for information and consultation and also to contribute to its promotion of high performance workplaces, partnership and employee involvement.
The CIPD has set up a task force to consider the key issues raised by the Directive and to make recommendations to the government about UK implementation. The Institute is aware of the challenges posed to organisations and of the importance of making sure that the new law will be workable for all sizes and sectors of business. Alongside this, the CIPD has commissioned research (by academics at Glasgow University) into information and consultation arrangements and their impact on business performance.
Euro
Euro notes came into circulation on 1 January 2002. National notes and coins have now been withdrawn, after a brief period with old and new in use side by side. A month after the introduction of the new currency, more than 95 per cent of cash transactions were being made in euros. The euro area currently comprises 12 EU member states: Belgium, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal and Finland.
High Level Group recommendations
The EU High Level Group, advising the Commission on the future of employee relations and enlargement, has released its report. This poses challenges to companies and organisations which have developed decentralised systems that have empowered managers and employees at local level. The report says that the new agenda for industrial relations should build on new practices such as innovation agreements, collective wage funds, employability agreements, time saving accounts for training and portability of social rights. It recommends the development of national and sectoral collective bargaining within the applicant countries of Eastern Europe and the building of employer and trade union structures to reflect the existing structures of the EU.
Health and safety at work
The Commission has published ‘New Community Strategy for Health and Safety at Work 2002 – 2006’, a strategic report with three new ideas:
- Adopting a global approach to ‘well-being at work’, including taking account of stress, aimed at enhancing the quality of life
- Consolidating a culture of risk prevention through a variety of political instruments including social dialogue and partnership
- Including social policy as a factor in competitiveness and productivity
Fixed-term work
These regulations have come into force this month. One key feature is that, once an individual has been on fixed-term contracts for four years, he or she will automatically become a permanent employee. Service prior to 1 October 2002 will not count to the four year qualifying period. It is important to ensure that, where organisations treat fixed- term employees differently to permanent employees, such differences in treatment can be objectively justified.
Corporate social responsibility
The Employment and Social Affairs Committee of the European Parliament has urged the Commission to adopt a more regulatory approach to the issue of corporate social responsibility than the essentially voluntary one proposed in the Commission’s Green Paper on this issue. The Commission’s current definition of corporate social responsibility is “essentially a concept whereby companies decide voluntarily to contribute to a better society and cleaner environment”. The Committee believes this undermines the very idea of global governance. It has recommended new legislation which would require companies to report annually on the social and environmental impact of their activities in Europe and beyond. The Committee has called for the formation of a working group on this subject.
Temporary work
In March the European Commission adopted a Directive concerning the rights of temporary and agency staff. This will grant temporary agency workers a right to no less favourable treatment than a comparable worker once they have been continuously employed in the undertaking for six weeks. The Directive covers pay and basic conditions of service such as working time, breaks, rest periods and night work. Any difference in treatment must be objectively justified. National legislation in EU member countries will need to be adopted within three years.
EAPM
The Cyprus Human Resource Management Association (CyHRMA)’s two year probationary period has been completed and they became full members of the EAPM at the Delegates’ Assembly in Paris in June. As well as many achievements in the professional development of the organisation, membership has grown and plans are well under way to introduce a professional qualification scheme.
The Bulgarian Human Resource Management and Development Association (BHRMDA) has joined the EAPM as a probationary member from June 2002 to June 2004; Personnel Managers in Denmark (PID) has also joined as a probationary member for that period.
The French association, ANDCP, hosted the 40th anniversary of the EAPM in Paris in June. The event was marked by a one-day symposium in the appropriate setting of the European information centre, ‘Europe des sources’ in La Defense. Over 100 delegates from all over Europe gathered together to hear experts in the profession debate a range issues - from social Europe to age management in organisations. There were great networking opportunities both at the event and during the wonderful dinner held the previous evening in a prestigious restaurant.
The Associazione Italiana per la Direzione del Personale (AIDP) in Italy is preparing to host the 21st Annual Congress in Rome from 24 – 27 June 2003. The conference programme, around the theme of the Tech-Net Age, is now largely completed, with many key speakers confirmed, for example Romano Prodi, Eduardo Bueno Campos and Francis Fukuyama. As well as plenary sessions and round tables, there will be parallel sessions looking at such issues as diversity management, transforming behaviour, learning from peers and the relationship between education in school and work. A CD Rom is available for WFPMA members to market in their own countries. It is hoped that the Congress, which will be offering excellent professional and social opportunities, will attract people management professionals from all WFPMA member countries.
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