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Post and telecoms face massive changes...
but for better or worse?
As the old saying goes, "Neither rain, nor sleet nor snow ..." can stop the post. But how about globalization, privatization and technological development? Transformations in the post and telecoms sector over the past decade have significantly affected overall employment levels, working conditions, and labour relations. Have the changes been for the better or for the worse?
GENEVA - Delegates from governments, and employers' and workers' organizations from about 40 countries gathered at the ILO in May to consider the implications for employment, employability and equal opportunities, of changes taking place in the post and telecoms sectors.
The picture painted by the tripartite participants was complex; profound negative and positive effects on employment, with job creation in some areas and job losses in others.
Indeed, in the four years since their last meeting, telecoms had gone from boom to bust, as enthusiasm for third-generation mobile telephony and e-commerce waned, creating a challenging climate for creating quality new jobs.
The delegates, however, agreed that the best way of managing the process of change is likely to be through appropriate strategic planning and effective social dialogue.
The background paper to the meeting, prepared by the ILO Sectoral Activities Programme, offers detailed research evidence to reinforce the view that, in terms of employment opportunities, the current situation is a mixed one. In the telecoms sector, privatization and liberalization have generally resulted in job losses for the previously public telecoms giants, but recent years have seen new jobs created elsewhere.
The end result is confused; countries such as Austria, Finland, the United Kingdom, China, Malawi, and the United Arab Emirates are all reported as having seen significant increases in full-time telecoms services staff in the five years from 1995 to 99. By contrast, the net balance is firmly negative elsewhere in such countries as Italy, Spain, the Philippines, South Africa, and Tanzania. Jobs particularly at risk are those in areas such as construction, installation, repair, and maintenance of switching equipment.
It is a similar picture for the postal sector. Some countries have reported considerable net job losses in recent years; this has been the story, for example, in Kenya, Argentina, Uruguay, Cambodia, and the Russian Federation. Conversely, other countries, such as Switzerland, Egypt, Cameroon and Chile, have seen net job growth.
However, the very rapid pace of development makes it difficult to find very accurate employment statistics. Frustratingly, as the delegates put it in their conclusions, "it is difficult to assess whether the creation of employment opportunities in new postal and telecommunications services has compensated for job losses".
Easy generalizations, therefore, should be avoided. Nevertheless, as the delegates also pointed out, employment statistics hide the experiences of real people and their families. The loss of a job can be devastating for the individuals concerned, particularly if they find that their existing skills are rapidly becoming obsolete. There was agreement, therefore, that governments, employers, and workers share a responsibility in ensuring that the workforce is equipped with significant future-oriented skills.
Lifelong learning, it was argued, offers benefits for all. Not only is it the key to improving job opportunities and job satisfaction, it also can help avoid skills shortages and improve the quality of service which companies are able to offer their customers. Governments and employers should commit themselves to ensuring adequate funding, but workers also need to take responsibility for their own skills development, the delegates resolved.
In this respect, the ILO background report to the meeting identified several examples of good practice from around the world. The Swedish postal operator, Posten AB, for example, has developed a programme called Futurum, offering job search advice and assistance to staff whose jobs are being phased out, Germany's Deutsche Post has developed a computer-assisted training programme, while Spain's Correos y Telégrafos has launched a programme on quality awareness, specifically tailored to temporary staff.
In the telecoms sector, fifteen major European telecoms companies have collaborated with trade union representatives from Union Network International, in the joint Lisbon Statement, which identifies, among other priorities, the need for information and communication technology (ITC) training for all employees, for proper certification of ICT training, and for the use of the Internet for training purposes.
The ILO report also highlights innovative social partnerships between telecoms companies and trade unions in the United States, to develop employability initiatives. One of the most influential has been the Alliance for Employee Growth and Development, a partnership between AT&T, Lucent Technologies, and the Communications Workers of America. Also in the US, the National Coalition for Telecommunications Education and Learning (on which several companies and two unions are represented) has developed an innovative degree programme, taught primarily over the Internet. Other examples of good practice identified by the ILO report include the sectoral education and training authorities (SETAs), established by the South African government, with the support of the social partners.
Education and training; in particular "second-chance" education, can also be of special importance in terms of working for equal opportunities in the post and telecoms sectors.
The meeting called for new steps to be taken to open up career development opportunities for women and disadvantaged groups, arguing that flexible working arrangements may help provide access for people trying to enter or re-enter the workforce. As the meeting's conclusions put it, "The achievement of equal opportunities is a goal for which we should strive constantly. Progress has been made on equal opportunities in the postal and telecommunications sectors, but there is still a need for greater equality of opportunity in career advancement, and equality of treatment in pay and benefit structures."
The ability of government, employers', and workers' representative groups to agree to a common statement of conclusions at the end of the sectoral meeting offers the hope for healthy social dialogue in these two sectors, despite the sometimes rapid pace of change. Delegates drew attention to the global framework agreements already signed by Telefónica (Spain) and OTE (Greece) with trade union representatives, as examples of arrangements which can facilitate social partnership. But they also called on the ILO to study developments in the sectors further, and to promote the ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles Concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy, and the Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and its follow-up. More specifically, the ILO was asked to work with the Universal Postal Union, the International Telecommunication Union, and the World Bank, to arrange regional tripartite seminars for the post and telecoms sectors for Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
The report accompanying the sectoral meeting, "Employment, employability and equal opportunities in the postal and telecommunications services", is available on the ILO Web site, at www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/sector/techmeet/tmpts02/tmpts-r.pdf (English version). French and Spanish versions are also available. The conclusions of the meeting have not been examined by the ILO Governing Body and are therefore not yet definitive.