5th EWC Suez Environment meeting discusses European Observatory of Skills

(2 October 2015) European Works Council’s Representatives from Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Sweden, the United Kingdom and Spain met for the 5th time on 24 September to further discuss the transposition of the Gdf-Suez European Group Agreement on Strategic Workforce Planning into the new company SUEZ Environment.
The negotiations focused this time on how to set up a European Observatory of Skills into this new company and how to carry out
- Regulatory monitoring of our business activities with an analysis of any possible consequences on employment and skills,
- Monitoring of changes to commercial trends (changing demands of customers-tenders),
- Monitoring of changes to the technologies specific to our business activities and an analysis of any possible consequences on employment and skills,
- An analysis of the requirements for qualifications, skills.

The trade union side emphasized again the important role of the employer for informing and consulting employees in anticipation of restructuring business activities and would like to see it included in the agreement. Cross-mobility between subsidiaries and within countries in anticipating redundancies and the respect for local collective agreement that provide for training needs and adaptation of skills due to technological developments and digitalisation. Trade unions and European Federation play a crucial role in identifying the skill needs and dysfunctioning training requirements for all workers in Suez Environment. Trade Unions and EPSU asked management to come up with concrete proposals to improve the text in these areas.