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| Strike picket at the gate of the Volkswagen plant in Brussels, November 2006. Volkswagen was planning to close the whole plant. |
A
few days ago I heard for the first time a TV interviewer ask
president Marc Leemans of the Belgium trade union confederation ACV
if the trade union was not what old-fashioned? Of course the
President did not agree. The trade union represents the interests of
the workers and he knows what this means. As he himself explained, he
is from a workers family with seven children. His mother did not have
an easy life. Those times must not come back, he said. The interests
of workers are therefore in good hands with him. However, this was
was not an answer to the question.
In
the Netherlands, on the other hand, already some time the trade
unions are accused of being old-fashioned. Not by everyone, of
course, but still disturbingly often. In short, the criticism is that
trade unions are against any change, that they are only interested to
represent their members, mostly older workers with a permanent
contract and that they have no interest in the problems of youth.
Meanwhile, young people are unemployed or have a low paid job without
a permanent contract, lower social benefits, have to work longer and
probably will have a lower pension. A gap threatens to grow between
the older workers and young people. The older generation thinks only
of himself, that is the allegation. In stead of solidarity, there is
a generational conflict growing.
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| Meeting of workers of Volkswagen in front of the plant in Brussels, november 2006 |
The
trade unions do not agree with this. They see themselves as
progressive, modern, solidary, useful and important for country and
people. They still have the status of official national
representatives of all workers in the nation. They are the social
partners of employers and politics. Their social dialogue led to
social peace and political stability, the basis on which the postwar
welfare state was built. The welfare state as organized solidarity.
But
there were changes, partly due to the success of the welfare state
itself. As a result of the welfare state people live longer, this
threatens to make pensions based on the pay-as-you-go system
priceless. As a result of the on going globalization, traditional
industries disappeared like mining, steel, shipbuilding, textile
industry etc., precisely those industries on which the sociopolitical
power and collectivist solidarity model of trade unionism was based.
The demise of traditional smokestack industry was followed by new
industries with a growing individualization. Higher and better
educated workers, also the result of the welfare state, are less
charmed of the collectivistic solidarity model. They want to have
part time work, have personal responsibility, if possible they want
to change jobs etc. In the meantime the labor market asks for more
flexible working hours and contracts, outsourcing, self-employed
(millions of self-employed enter the labor market ) followed by
privatization, liberalization etc. Globalization brought much turmoil
on the labor market.
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| One of the strikers at the Volkswagen plant in Brussels, november 2006 |
The
trade unions are since then facing two big problems: loss of
thousands of members and a rapidly changing labor market as a result
of individualization, globalization, liberalization and
privatization. You can then try to stop this but then chances are
great that you are going to miss the economic link with the world
market and before you know you are losing the revenues on which the
welfare state is built. More distribution of wealth will probably
ease the pain, but not more than that. Economies built only on
distribution of wealth, at the end bring poverty. Cuba and North
Korea are extreme examples of this phenomenon. Investments are
needed, preferably in the private and public sectors. Investments
that also create new jobs.
The
public debate in the Netherlands in recent years resulted into
reforms such as raising the retirement age (within a period of
approximately 2 years the pension age will be raised until 67) , a
tighter and shorter unemployment insurance more focused on piloting
the unemployed into a new job than financial assistance, stricter
supervision of social services, limited subsidies for job creation
for the disabled and stricter monitoring of care. On top of this,
Governments call for more responsibility for a job, own income,
health care and so on.
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| Meeting of the strikers at the Volkswagen plant in Brussels, november 2006 |
Slowly
but surely, the image of the worker in the Netherlands changes from
victim into an individual that is responsable for its own life. The welfare
state is still there to support the workers when things go wrong but
not anymore to take care from the cradle to the grave. For many
unions this is like swearing in church, but their traditional power
base has been undermined.
No
wonder the unions are busy with themselves, looking for an answer to
the lost social and political influence. Mergers of trade unions from
various sectors is the answer to the loss of members. For example
already a few years, the Dutch trade union confederation FNV is
reorganizing its structures to bring all unions together under one
roof. This means more centralism to give more socio-political body to
the social dialogue. But centralism is at odds with
individualization. Workers want like consumers more customized
services and less imposed collectivist schemes. The mergers are
therefore only the beginning of a response to the crises.
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| Two workers at the trade union meeting of workers of Volkswagen, november 2006 |
To
make matters worse the new century began with an economic disaster of
a magnitude that has not been seen since the crisis in the twenties
and thirties of the last century. The consequences are now widely
reported, but the answer is not yet found. Economists are fighting
among themselves about what to do but nobody really knows. Unions are
trying to save from the burning socioeconomic house what can be saved
with classical solutions for example more money from the Government
for all kind of investments which means also making more debts.
The
trade unions do not need to be ashamed that they have no ready
answers and great difficulty with the reforms, but they may be more
open to suggestions. It is not constructive if trade unions do not
want to talk about proposals of employers to look for ways the
millions of self-employed to integrate in the social security system.
The trade unions should also start a dialogue about the possibility
for retired workers to continue working after they have reached the
age of pensioning. Trade unions that are putting their heels in the
sand, give indeed the impression of being old-fashioned.
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| Man at the solidarity bus is writing a message that begins with "We are not alone" |
