TRAIN Project Final Conference“Train and Rail Infrastructure Network”

5th and 6th of November 2012

Previous meetings and drafted report

With financial support of the EU

1

2

A few words on ConsultingeuropaConsultingeuropa is a consulting company specialised on social dialogue at European Level, located in Brussels. Consultingeuropa focuses on advising European institutions, social partners, associations and European Works Councils in multinational companies.

Consultingeuropa was born in early January 2011, from the alliance of two companies :

· The German labour-orientated consultancy PCG- Project Consult GmbH, · The French consulting company Groupe Alpha, whose subsidiary, Secafi, supports employees’ representatives and trade unions.

2

Consultingeuropa is able to gather a pool of experts in order to give you the most appropriate answer (sectoral, technical, human…). Our experts come from parents companies and from privileged partners in different European countries.

33

Göterburg University

Labour AsociadosMadrid

Solution4Budapest

GitpRotterdam

An european network

QlandBucarest

Warwick UniversityStrathclyde University

Thompsons SolicitorsLondon

Presence GroupLuxembourg

European University Institute Firenze

Fondazione SevesoMilan

Wilke, Maack & PartnersHamburg

ConsultingeuropaBrussels

Essen (PCG)Paris (Secafi)

Universidad Carlos IIIMadrid

Universidade de Coïmbra

Academic partner

Expert on EWC’s

FES - Warsaw

University of Leuven

Background IThe project has been developed after feedback from works councils in the rail production sector and the EMF Mechanical Engineering Committee.

Through the exchange of information, research and workshops, the TRAIN Project aims to build up a network of works councils and specialised trade unionists with a view to increasing expertise and knowledge transfer from the shop floor to the European level on the outlook for employment and innovation.

4

Background IIOn the one hand, rail production has been hard hit by the ongoing financial and economic crisis in terms of production and employment.

On the other hand, the sector is crucial In terms of employment sustainability and industrial competitiveness. In fact IndustriAll argues that it represents an often underestimated key sector for the sustainable industrial development of Europe..

5

Our external support:

A) Discussing with the EMF the needs and challenges on the project in 2010/2011

B) Doing a process-oriented study for the TRAIN project

C) Support to establish a network

Developing a semi-standardized questionnaire that asks around 20 specific questions about three domains:

1) strategic outlook for the industry 2) role of the European Works Council, 3) expectations of the employees.

6

What happend?

Kick off / Prepartory Meeting on the 7th of November 2011In order to develop the operating agenda and to fix the timeframe on the project

First Workshop on the 30th of November –

Discussing challenges and employment perspectives on different countries and sitesDiscussing the creation on the internal market for railway operators in EuropesDiscussion on the EU-White Paper on Transport 2011Presenting a drafted survey in order to establish and deepen network structures

7

What happend?

Second Workshop on the 12th January 2012 Discussing with a representative from the EU-COM on the Transport White Paper Reflecting on the CCMI paper on the European railway equipment sector Introduction on the shift2rail project by UNIFE

Discussion on the interaction of these three initatives - how to formulate a joint position as employee representatives

8

What happend?

Third Workshop on the 29th of March

Presenting the results and the survey of the questionnaire Presentation and discussion on the Situation in different countries like Spain, Germany and France Syntheses of prospective challanges in the sector (employment, lack of investments in Europe, Subcontracting, call for bids)

Decision to continue the exchange and stakeholder interaction and to organize a final conference – especially to present and to vote on a final declaration

9

The report „Lessons learned? – Challenges of the transformation of the train and railway infrastructure towards a sustainable European transport system“

We refelct on:Ambitions by the EU-COM to establish an integrated European railway area European Internal Transport Area“ – am issues and challanges(1) opening of the internal rail transport market to competition, (2) improving the interoperability and safety of national networks and (3) developing rail transport infrastructure. Critcal view on the liberalization of the rail way market and the intervention levels of the EU_COM (the rail way packages) in order to understand to current white paper

Needs towards solid European standards for working conditions and closer cooperation of trade unions on cross-border working conditions and collective bargaining issues.

10

To underline these needs I:We integrate the Position Paper from the European Transport Workers Federation -

Selected demands:

Increasing competition is not played at the expense of workers

Protection against wage and social dumping

Strengthen public services or services of general (economic) interests at EU level

Requirement of strong investment in rail infrastructure under state responsibility

Give a higher priority to the concept of "sustainability" in the face of the challenges

in the transport by the threat of climate change and resource scarcity

11

To underline these needs II:We provide a critical review on the EU White Paper on Transport 2011

Taken into accout former statements by the EU-COM in Green and White Papers on

transport

Given a critical look backwards towards the former aims and the till today

growing transport on the roads

Based on the detection of six errors in the EU-Papers (like optimistic growth,

Unilateral understanding of rail transport or Market credibility - demands on

competion, privatisation and seperation from network and operation.

12

The crisis in the European rail industry

General trends:

Lack of market growth in Europe

Increased competiton and downward trend in prices

Market growth e.g. in Asia and relocation of production

Evolution by the world market zones:

Providing an outlook on different regions

13

The challenges from an employer perspectiveRail investment in Central and Eastern Europe is limited

Skills needs can not be matched

International trade is distored

Two answers – „The Shift2Rail Initiative“ and the „Joint Technology

Initiative“ to get European Leadershp in global marktes

Focussing on research themes:

How to increase attraction for the Rail transport system

How to reach a high Performance Rail System

How to reach a dependable integrated Rail System

14

The challenges from the Employee´s representatives perspectives I

1) Reporting and reflecting the discussions within the workshops

and this conference

2) A survey we realized with a semi-standardised questionaire

15

The challenges from the Employee´s representatives perspectives II

Outsourcing, offshoring and relocation (R&D) – nomadic structures

of the market

1) Annoucement of Outsourcings, Restrucurings and Relocations to give

pressure on wage agreements and collecitve bargainings

2) Health and saftey issues

3) Relocation of R&D into growing markets like India

Lack of Investments - economic crisis, national austerity plans, philosophy of

cost reduction – competition between companies and employees

16

17

Turke

y US

German

yIta

ly

France

Russia

Swed

en

Netherl

ands

Spain UK

India

Austria

Switze

rland

China0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

0.20.8

1.52.3 2.6 2.8 2.9 3

3.5

4.6 4.7

66.4

12.5

Dollars per $1,000 of GDP Source: SCI Verkehr

Outlook on different countries by the national reports

18

The survey we did – 26 replies (e.g. Alstom, AnsaldoBreda, Bombardier, Siemens, Balfour Betty Rail, Transtech OY, TSTG Schienentechnik GmbH, Gutehoffnungshütte Radsatz GmbH, Thales, Vossloh and VoestAlpine.)

The survey analysis had the objectives:

To compare the challenges in terms of economic and social issues in order to assess the current situation and develop normative suggestions.

To analyse the results of the questionnaire, to draw some lessons from the challenges they face, particularly in terms of restructuring (most of the companies we evaluated had seen restructuring processes in the last two years).

To allow the members of the TRAIN network to develop axes of reflexion on the role and importance of the European works councils in these processes.

- But it gives just a flashlight: The restricted sample of responses does not allow us to draw really reliable conclusions on the sector.

19

Challenges faced by the works councils according to nationality:

German works councils are predominantly occupied with safeguarding employment in 2011

In Spain and France working conditions are at the top of the WC-agenda

The issues of employment, health and safety are generally well discussed and high on the priority list of most representatives

The anticipation of change is largely not considered. Is it already well managed?

20

Of the economical challenges faced by the works councils France names outsourcing and delocalisation as very important points of discussion.

The question on prospective investments is an issue for all companies

21

Working conditions

Skills and qualifications

Health and Safety

Restructuring

Joint-Ventures and R&D

Anticipation of change

Contact to EU institutions

Joint position paper

0

10

20

Topics to exchange within our network

22

national companies and colleagues

companies and colleagues at international level

national actors

international actors 0

10

20

TRAIN members want to improve relations with…

23

The employee representatives are facing considerable challenges in terms of new contracts in Europe - increasing debt crisis in Europe

The anticipation of skill needs in the companies is particularly challenging.

There are legitimate concerns about the lack of funding large scale project in Europe. The commitment to achieve a significant share of production in foreign client countries is indeed growing stronger in order to win new large contracts.

24

In this context, maintaining jobs and retention of skills are major issues and the risk is that sites will be weakened during the crisis; also in this context of relocation of production in client countries, it is necessary to be very vigilant to outsourcing operations in the direction of low-cost countries. This applies to all players in the sector.

The 3 major companies Alstom, Bombardier and Siemens (ABS) are well prepared to deliver their products in the emerging markets.

Sites outside of Europe will profit from this trend and EWC members want to get in contact with them in order to defend good social standards internationally.

25

CONTENT of the report1) Foreword2) Introduction3) The Creation on an Europan Internal Transport Area –

Issues and challanges4) The EU White Paper on Transport 2011 – A critical review5) The crisis in the rail industry (more European than global)6) The challenges of the sector (employer perspective)7) The challenges of the sector from employee´s rep.

perspective8) Conclusions9) Recommendations

26

Conclusion and Recommendations will be developed based as well on the discussions of the conference

Thank youJörg Weingarten