WRITTEN QUESTION No. 4084/98 by Luigi FLORIO Exclusion of SMIs from European trade union negotiations
Date: 1999-01-14
Institutions: European Parliament, FLORIO
Subjects: European Trade Union Confederation, European organisation, collective bargaining, handicrafts, industrial enterprise, job creation, labour relations, small and medium-sized enterprises, social dialogue (EU), social partners













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91998E4084

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 4084/98 by Luigi FLORIO Exclusion of SMIs from European trade union negotiations  


Official Journal C 325 , 12/11/1999 P. 0053 





WRITTEN QUESTION E-4084/98by Luigi Florio (PPE) to the Commission(14 January 1999)Subject: Exclusion of SMIs from European trade union negotiationsOrganisations representing European SMIs are normally only consulted by the Commission and systematically excluded from negotiations, to which only organisations representing big business are invited.Nevertheless, as the statistics clearly show, SMIs are the only ones to have created new jobs in recent decades, and the number of people employed by big business has continued to decrease.Does the Commission not think that this state of affairs should be rectified and European organisations representing SMIs allowed to participate in trade union negotiations?Answer given by Mr Flynn on behalf of the Commission(3 March 1999)Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) have a crucial role in contributing to wealth and jobs in the Community. The Commission has a duty to promote the European social dialogue and to ensure maximum representativeness in consultation and in the implementation of agreements according to the respective principles underlying these processes.The Commission and the Council have the responsibility to control that the signatories to an agreement reached by the social partners, which is to be transposed into Community legislation, are sufficiently representative in relation to the scope of the agreement. However, the institutions have to fully respect the autonomy of the social partners and cannot intervene in the free choice of negotiating partner.In its communication, "Adapting and promoting social dialogue at Community level" of 20 May 1998(1), the Commission gave a clear message urging the social partners to ensure that their dialogue remains strong and continues to attract widespread support by ensuring optimum representation. This message, which was very much in line with the position of the Parliament on the green paper which preceded the communication(2), led to a serious discussion between the Union of industrial and employers' confederations of Europe (UNICE) and the European Union of crafts and small and medium sized enterprises (UEAPME) on the possibility for the latter to take part in all the relevant joint-action and negotiation processes within the European social dialogue. The two organisations concluded an agreement at the end of 1998 on cooperation between UNICE and UEAPME in the social dialogue meetings, including negotiations. The Commission welcomes this as an important step forward regarding constructive dialogue and broader participation in social partner negotiations at European level.(1) COM(98) 322 final.(2) COM(96) 448 final.