Industrial relations
for a green economy
Innovative bargaining processes for a sustainable
growth and a quality employment
Project VS/2014/0405 co-founded
by
DGESAI – DG EMPLOYMENT, SOCIAL AFFAIRS and INCLUSION
EDIZIONILAVORO
Introduction
by Annamaria Furlan*
The “jobs versus the environment” frame has featured prominently in recent decades but it really needs to be thoroughly examined and interrogated. There are people who strongly claim that a green alliance is possible and can provide us with a more optimistic view of the future. The “Europe 2020” Strategy is the most recent attempt to react to the crisis and increase the competitiveness of European society through the promotion of values of a sustainable, efficient and inclusive growth.
Development and employment policies are more and more linked to environmental issues: the creation of new jobs linked to the environment and the promotion of a quality employment necessarily constitute a priority objective of the European social model, in which the social partners and social dialogue are fundamental.
From our reflection clearly emerges that analysing negotiation processes and identifying new environmental skills for trade unionists are key issues for an effective social dialogue on environmental and employment matters. Environmental issues should not in fact be considered an externality, a cost, but a great opportunity for the economy development’ and an effective and participatory social dialogue.
The project starts from the awareness of the multiple external and internal connections linked to the environment in the workplaces and a further step consists in the positive interaction of various stakeholders.
A perspective that moves in the opposite direction conceives the business oriented policies to maximize the benefits in the short term, using the resources available in a given environment context until these have been exhausted.
It can be assumed that a system of industrial relations, able to maintain a dialogue between the parties and take shared decisions, is a necessary condition to expand the actions of the stakeholders involved and the conditions to help their participation and contribution to the production of results that satisfy them.
* CISL General Secretary.
Please review the attached file in it΄s entirety here: Industrial relations EL