Suchergebnisse

Negli ultimi anni, le aziende produttrici di elettrodomestici dei Paesi dell'Europa occidentale hanno subito importanti processi di ristrutturazione. La delocalizzazione delle attivitŕ produttive dai Paesi dell'Europa occidentale ai Paesi a basso costo del lavoro è diventato anche una questione importante nelle relazioni industriali di tutta Europa. Ll saggio esamina i modi e in che misura è possibile, attraverso pratiche di relazioni industriali, influenzare le decisioni di delocalizzazione e la loro attuazione. L'autore sostiene che la capacitŕ di sviluppare strategie che siano in grado di prendere in considerazione sia la necessitŕ di migliorare la competitivitŕ sia gli aspetti sociali della ristrutturazione aziendale, dipende in larga misura da un efficace sistema di regolazione sociale. Viene infine evidenziato l'influenza degli attori a livello europeo, quali la Federazione Europea dei Metalmeccanici e i Comitati Aziendali Europei, sui processi di ristrutturazione transnazionale.

This article looks at the role of various forms of participation in experiences of employee-driven innovation in Italy. On the one hand, it analyses the extent to which forms of direct and representative participation have fostered processes of organizational innovation driven by the knowledge and creativity of employees. On the other hand, the article identifies the specific limits of these forms of employee involvement in processes of organizational innovation. Innovative experiences of employee involvement will be presented on the basis of a case study. The new approach to employee involvement applied in the analysed case provides indications for reflection on the innovation of the Italian system for the representation and participation of employees. The study shows that by integrating and coordinating various forms of participation, employees' knowledge and creativity can be used more effectively in the context of organizational innovation processes.

This paper presents the main results of a research project which analysed the 'inner life' of the European Works Council (EWC), that is, the structures and processes of communication and patterns of interaction within EWCs, and between EWCs and other actors such as trade union organisations, company-level employee representatives and management. The project set out to be a qualitative investigation into the processes of communication and interaction which condition and influence the functioning of EWCs. It involved systematic case study research into the interests, motives, expectations and perceptions of the actors involved and the barriers to socio-cultural interaction which characterise the operation of EWCs. Furthermore, the project examined the concrete activities performed by EWCs in order to identify their actual role. The latter part of the analysis deals with the development of EWC activities over time, with specific reference to the involvement of Italian unions in EWCs. This paper argues that, under certain conditions, EWCs take on a role which goes beyond the tasks defined by the European Directive.

The European Union Energy Sector Directive no. 96/62 laid down that Member States were to initiate a market liberalisation process in the electricity sector. In this context Pacts for Employment and Competitiveness (PEC) represent part of a strategy enterprises are adopting in order to face the challenge of managing the changeover from near-monopoly to internationally competitive structures. The article, based on ten case studies carried out in five EU Member States, looks at the thinking underlying these pacts, the changes at the level of collective bargaining, and how the PECs are interpreted by the parties involved: not only the contents of the PECs, but also the underlying motives, the processes of negotiation and the effects of the agreements. It points to areas in which PECs have been able to contribute to generating win-win situations, but also to possible ambiguities and contradictions linked to the negotiation and implementation of such pacts.