CNV

Brussels, 09 September 2011 - On 01 and 02 September 2011 the European Organization of the World Organization of Workers – WOW with the support of the Federació d’Estalvia de Catalunya (FEC-CAT) and the Fuerza Sindical Empleados de Cajas (FEC) organized a European seminar in cooperation with the European Centre for Workers’ Questions (EZA) and with the support of the European Commission. The theme of the seminar was: “Social Dialogue and Youth: A love/hate relationship!”.48 trade union leaders from twelve EU countries participated during the seminar which took place in Barcelona, Spain. 

The seminar focused on the situation of young people in the process of European enlargement and integration. The youth and young workers within the European Union traditionally have a difficult position on the labour-market. They still lack the experience that older workers have and are often considered as unfit for the job. This perception is problematic since one needs work to gain the necessary experience and practical knowledge. Additionally young workers are often working in sectors which have felt the effects of the current crisis the most and they are very often have temporary contracts. 

The seminar started with an introductory presentation on EU Youth Policy by Ms. Beryl ter Haar, PhD-candidate at the Faculty of Law, University of Leiden (The Netherlands). When one looks at the EU youth policy over the years one can see that it has been an important area. What is striking, however, is the fact that there is, even today, no legal base in EU treaties for overall Youth Policy. It is all by virtue of the goodwill of the EU Member States. Another problem with the current youth policy is the fact that the policies are not mainstreamed. The youth are left out of the decision-making process. And that is where trade unions and other organizations involved in the position of youth can and should step in. There are numerous instruments, but in the end there is one important thing missing: (Social) Dialogue. Social partners are not much involved in the development of the EU policies.

Mr. Gregorio González Roldán form the Instituto Regional de las Cualificaciones de la
Comunidad de Madrid – IRCUAL (Spain) gave an outline of the current situation of the youth in Spain. Spain is hit extremely hard by the crisis having one of the highest unemployment rates of the EU and the highest when merely looking at the youth unemployment (between 40% – 50% depending on the region). Traditionally Spain pays a low salary to its workers. This is even more the case for young people. An important point of discussion in Spain is the educational system which differs between the various regions in Spain. Spain has a high rate of school-leavers and youth without qualifications. Thus making it very difficult to find a first job. For these youth there are little possibilities. It should be a task of the government to assist these youth, but it is failing to do so. Also because the regions have a responsibility as well. So what can be seen is that some regions are doing better (or worse) than others. There is a clear need of a common framework for education. 

Ms. Rimantė Ribačiauskaitė, Coordinator of International Relations of the Lithuanian Youth Council – LiJOT (Lithuania) focussed on the position of youth in Lithuania. Problems are similar in all countries if the EU. The difference is caused by the economic position of the country and how the government is dealing with the problems. According to data, the current young generation is the most educated in Europe’s history. Disregarding the level of education, all young people find it difficult to find a job. This has effects on the migration statistics. 38 560 of young people age 14-29 emigrated from Lithuanian during 2010 (short term and long term migration), while 67% would like to go to work abroad. The government of Lithuania does offer a lot of possibilities for young people to facilitate their (re-)integration into the labour-market, but so far it has not solved the unemployment issues.

In addition to what the government can do there is also a role for the workers’ organizations. Workers‘ organisations increase their efforts to promote the participation of young people in trade unions and additionally make their activities more attractive to young people. Due to the very difficult situation of young people on the labour-market it is crucial to create a sensation that even though being in an insecure labour-market situation or being unemployed young people are important to workers‘ organisations. Youth is not only the future! The youth is also now!

This was confirmed by Ms. Anna Maria Darmanin, Vice-President of the European Economic and Social Committee – EESC (Malta). The youth is often talked about, but how many are actually involved in trade unions? There is a greater need to be more introspective and to look at one’s own organization and structure as well when it comes to the position of youth. Are trade unions really attracting young people. And what means should be used to get into touch with young people. And are these means working? Youth unemployment has always been a part of the labour-market. It is nothing new. The current crisis just increased it and made it more visible. We should therefore also look at ourselves and ask ourselves what we are doing wrong.

Mr. IJmert Muilwijk, President CNV Jongeren (The Netherlands), shared these thoughts stating that the role of trade unions will have to change from Re-active to Pro-active and that it should be more visionary. Trade unions should also offer a platform for young people where they can develop themselves and get individual support. The Netherlands has a relatively good position in comparison to other EU countries. Still the government is very much involved in youth policy to further decrease the unemployment rate, thereby focusing on three fields of interest: Education, Labour-market policy, Education labour-market. Most important in all of this is to keep the youth involved and interested to prevent them form becoming a so-called lost generation.

The seminar further contained working groups whereby the trade union leaders could discuss the problems faced in their home-countries. This lead to interesting discussions with some interesting results. One can really see that although we are part of one European Union the differences between the countries are manifold. This was further confirmed by the participants of the panel-discussion. Though the problems faced are similar in the various countries their solutions are in some instances quite different. 

What can be concluded from the seminar is that there should be more focus on the position of youth. Though they have always had a special position on the labour-market, with low job-security and high unemployment-rates, we should gradually come to a change of opinion about youth. They are, and will continue to be, very important for the labour-market. It is our task to keep them involved and interested so that they are well-prepared for their task. We should try to avoid the creation of a lost generation. To prevent this all social partners will have to act now. Because youth is not only the future! The youth is now! If we do not act we will be confronted with the effects in the future. And this future is approaching fast.

for pictures click here