FAQ

YES, more than ever! In any one country and in Europe as a whole.

Differences in social provision, wage levels and the economies of member states are still enormous and there is still a great deal to be done to establish the "social Europe".

The distressing problem of high levels of unemployment - now unacceptable in the majority of Europe's regions - only adds to the differences and renders the prospect of any improvement in social conditions unlikely, especially for those both inside and outside the Community who have fewest advantages as it is.

Fewer and fewer jobs are available, and employers seize on any excuse to attack some of the most fundamental rights we have managed to obtain. The "bosses'" contentions on productivity and the exorbitant cost of wage bills and social security payments rear their heads once again.

This constitutes a very real threat in the more socially advanced countries and in the institutions of the European Communities, indeed all the more so since it is becoming increasingly clear that many young people just coming onto the labour market - those who have been lucky enough to get a job - do not always realise that the rights and benefits they enjoy constitute an inestimable inheritance in today's world. Indeed the very conditions in which they work are the fruit of countless hours of negotiation, punctuated by just as many hard-fought battles by European trade unions and their members. Sadly, even some of the "oldsters" sometimes forget.

So the very real threat that these social achievements may be jeopardised by a lack of awareness and of "fighting spirit" on the part of the new generation entering the workforce is becoming increasingly acute and imminent.

The institution in which you are about to start work, and the European Public Service of which you are to become a part, have not escaped these ideas, which have proved so disastrous to the world of work, and which are gaining ground in the minds of some senior figures.

Times have changed, even in our institutions. Unions cannot ignore the enormous political upheavals which have marked the end of this century. They cannot afford to stand idly by, arguing among themselves while the economic and social fallout of these events, over which they have next to no control, gradually erodes hard-won achievements at the workplace.

The social partners must be obliged by law to play the game when it comes to dialogue. And if underemployment does not set us all off on the wrong track, a new era will dawn for trade unions, and a new and much more imaginative approach will have to be found. Union Syndicale stands ready to move with the times, to move on from the traditional unionism of the 70s. If, however, the climate continues to deteriorate, and all avenues of dialogue are shut down, we shall be dragged down into the sort of confrontation and dispute associated with more troubled times in the societies of many European countries.

So here you are, you have started work and you wonder "Just a minute, who do I work for?". Not an easy question to answer, even when you have been working here for years.Your principal and real boss is the Council of the European Union. Representing the member states, the Council is the immediate "boss", via the Secretary General, of those who work in the Secretariat General of Council. The more important of the two "budgetary authorities", Council nevertheless has proved quite incapable of setting up a common policy for organising and managing staff employed by Civil Services in the member states, still less its "own staff" in the European Public Service.

While the Council Secretariat's staff management policy is better than that of most of the other institutions, the Council of the Union, when making decisions on funding or staff regulations, never misses an opportunity of showing how little respect it has for European civil servants, or for the work they do in the service of the European Union and its citizens.

Boss number 2 is the European Parliament, directly reformted by the citizens of Europe.

Second arm of the budgetary authority, its powers are still limited, albeit extended by the Treaty on European Union. It is the immediate "boss", via the Secretary General, of the staff of the European Parliament, and is attempting to establish itself as the democratic alternative to the Council of the Union.

Its efforts have so far been largely in vain, and it has still not managed to propose a consistent,properly funded policy for managing the requirements of the European Union.

The third real employer is the College of Commissioners, under their President, directly responsible for the largest of the institutions in terms of staff numbers. It has a special role to play in that it is the only instution which has the power - fearedby some, considered excessive by others - to instigate procedures by presenting proposals, notably for legislation, to the decision-making bodies, i.e. the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament.The real impetus to Europeanintegration in the last decade, much criticised during ratification of the Maastricht Treaty, the Commission seems to have set itself political targets which too often go beyond what those in the driving seat, the Member States, really want. Yet the Commission has been prepared to accept, admittedly under political duress, draconian restrictions on its operating budget quite at odds with its political ambitions!

Add to this the other "bosses", entirely dependent on the decisions of the two budgetary authorities mentioned above, i.e. the Judges of the Court of Justice, members of the Court of Auditors and of the Economic and Social Committee. They are responsible for their staff via their Presidents, in the first two cases, and the Secretary General in the last.

To complete the picture, we should also mention those in charge of the para-Community institutions, whose Staff Regulations bear more or less resemblance to our own, and who are also totally unable to influence budgetary decisions, such as the Director General of Eurocontrol, the Director of the Dublin Foundation and of the Thessaloniki Centre, as well as the Board of Governors of the European Schools.

It is extremely unlikely that you will be in direct contact with any one of these employers, other than in the course of your work. Each of them operates within his own institution, through its Administration and most particularly via the Appointing Authority (known by its French acronym AIPN), which you will now encounter regularly throughout your working life and even afterwards, as a pensioner.

If you have managed to follow this explanation, you are beginning to understand why it is worth considering joining a trade union.

Clearly, when up against so many different people in charge, and so complex a power structure, it is essential to join forces. Especially as, from the day you start work, what you do as well as your rights as an official, your salary and benefits are for your employer to decide, with all the attendant risks of paternalism and misuse of power.

That being so, an effective counterweight is vital if some kind of balance of power is to be struck.

Union Syndicale, a representative, well-organised, credible union, has proved itself in 20 years of defending both the common and the individual interests of all the staff of all the institutions, as well as in the cause of the European Public Service, especially in defence of our jobs and of the principles of the European Union.

Union Syndicale was founded in 1973, set up to defend the unique status of officials of the European Communities.

This unique status demands a unique organisation, drawn from all hierarchical levels, and a wide range of cultural backgrounds, an organisation with open, democratic procedures, through which its members can make their views known.

Union Syndicale is known for its capacity to evaluate and to negotiate, with the support of the majority of staff, and has always enjoyed the respect of its "social partners" whether in bread and butter situations or in times of crisis.

But when the talking has had to stop, with vital interests at stake, Union Syndicale has proved quite capable of mobilising, and sustaining action until a genuine dialogue could be resumed, in the form of proper negotiations producing the results needed to safeguard our future.

Union Syndicale stands ready at all times to take up the cudgels in defence of the independence, competence and permanence of the European Public Service, without ever shutting itself off from the public or private sector around us. Thus Union Syndicale, which brings together many of the institutions here in Brussels, headquarters of the European Union, is the principal member of Union Syndicale Fédérale, which in its turn brings together all the Unions Syndicales from all our places of work, as well as international organisations not covered by the European treaties (Council of Europe, European Patents Office).

It is also affiliated to the Public Service International (PSI) and the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), where we join trade unions from all our countries, undoubtedly known to you by their acronyms (DGB, FO-CGT, CFDT, CISL, CGIL, UIL, TUC, FGTB, CSC, CGSP, ABVA/KABO, LO,...)