Revolutions change outward appearances fast enough, but thorough transition
works in more devious ways. Soon a decade of democracy and institutional
pluralism will have passed - and real change is surfacing. Employers are
becoming a reality to be reckoned with. Much simplified, one can say that
the former command system used four main "transmission belts"
to keep society moving. One of these was political - the Party structure.
One was social - the "trade unions". One was administrative -
the state administration that also handled the various economic Plans.
A final one was economic - the chambers of trade and/or economy. Together,
these "transmission belts" constituted the centrally controlled
apparat of the command system. Their functions often overlapped, and they
all performed various other duties as well. The years 1989-1991-1993 changed
the "face" of communist societies fast enough, and the continuing
drama of the political and mental adaptation of regimes and citizens to
the new ideals has been played out visibly and graphically in front of
our eyes. Yet the structural changes necessary to sustain the desired new
order have been more difficult to achieve, as well as to observe. Many
of the difficulties encountered over the course of transition have as much
to do with the very complicated and difficult restructuring of the apparats
as with the much more debated phenomenon of how to change peoples' minds
and attitudes. The vitality of political pluralism has proven itself in
this first decade - although hard pressed indeed this past year, democracy
has in the end carried the day in most transition societies. The institutional
pluralism needed for a functioning civil society has proven much harder
to come by, however. This is why the ILO puts such emphasis on tripartism
- or Social Dialogue, as it is called in the EU. These difficulties, and
the disturbances they create, were discussed at length in our previous
Newsletter (1/97), with the conclusion that employers face the greatest
challenges. Transition itself is threatened unless employers are better
understood and accepted, so that ordered consultations can replace the
informal, increasingly corrupt workings of the apparat and its derivatives.
Yet lo and behold! - the winds are changing! Although hard pressed, and
still often directly opposed both fiscally and politically, employers and
their organisations are gaining ground and becoming a force to be reckoned
with in country after country. Surprised, governments note that often long-established
tripartite consultations are becoming "for real". They find that
national tripartite agreements, hitherto signed either by token employers'
organisations or only "between friends" (governments and trade
unions), as they were before, now are turning into the genuine article.
Governments now either proudly demonstrate such developments as proof positive
of the progress of their transition - or, they welcome the unification
of employers' organisations, yet plead that they should not become too
strong, so as not to complicate delicate relations. Probably these signals
are genuine indications that sufficient time has passed for the more difficult
transition processes to yield visible results. Still, this challenges powerful
interests that have established power bases and considerable political
and economic assets, due to their diligent manipulation of remaining apparat
structures. Employers must therefore redouble their efforts and consolidate
their organisational presence and position, both nationally and internationally
- the latter being especially important for countries aspiring to future
EU membership. Trade unions finally get the partner they have looked for
to help them in their own very complicated transition from their role as
the "transition belts" of old. Democratic political parties should
also welcome this development, and see the strengthened employers' organisations
as welcome allies in the struggle with the informal sector, corruption
and crime. Governments must recognise this and fully accept the legitimacy
of organised employers, by visibly supporting them vis-r-vis various informal
sector operators and removing remaining obstacles in their way. This is
especially true of fiscal restraints that remain in several cases - notwithstanding
governments' unanimous adoption of a recommendation to remove such obstacles
at the 1995 ILO Regional European Conference in Warsaw! BG
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| ILO Film |
| Fully fit at work |
Film about the advantages of employing persons with disabilities. As this ILO film (Fully Fit at Work) shows, not only may people with disabilities be more productive, they may actually be more skilled in some jobs than non-disabled people. Produced for the ILO by the Andrzej Wajda Master School of Film Directing.
Watch the film online in Polish with English subtitles. Duration: 21 min 11 sec
If the video is not displayed, download the free RealPlayer™
Press release in English and
Polish |
| Events & campaigns |
World Day Against Child Labour
12 June 2008
Education: The right response to child labour
» read more
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| ILO, UN deliver as one in Albania |
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A package for social and economic progress
The Albanian pilot of the One UN Programme will make use of the experiences of the International Labour Organization (ILO) gained in the field. As the only tripartite organisation within the United Nations system, the ILO plays a key role in involving social partners in the recently launched UN reform process.
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