In his presentation, Dr. Peter Johnston, Head of the Programmes Applications Unit of Directorate B-1 with the European Commission's DGXIII, detailed the measures being taken by the Commission to facilitate the growth of the information society in Europe.
With over 18 million Europeans out of work, said Johnston, Europe faced an extremely difficult period for economic growth and industrial change. The current recession was not just cyclical, but grew out of rapid structural change in industry and commerce worldwide, towards the globalisation of production and marketing, and the de-materialisation of production. To compete, organizations must master information and communications technologies, new forms of enterprise and new working methods. Labour unions would need to adapt to a much more volatile labour market.
In emphasising the importance with which the European Commission viewed teleworking and the development of the information society, Johnston cited the presentation given by the President of the European Commission to Heads of State at the European Summit in June 1993, At the Dawn of the 21st Century (1), the December 1993 White Paper on Growth, Competitiveness and Employment (2), and the Bangemann Report presented in June 1994 to the Heads of State in Corfu, Europe and the Global Information Society (3). The last, said Johnston, identified teleworking as the top priority application.
The Transformation of Society
Over the next five to ten years, Johnston argued, Europe will evolve and human knowledge will come to constitute not only an economic resource but also a structural element of society. The repercussions of technological innovation will transform the economy, social organization, and lifestyles of its citizens. Hence the Commission's emphasis on the "information society" rather than highways or infrastructures.
The transition to an information economy is reversing the trend towards the concentration and centralisation of production stemming from the Industrial Revolution, Johnston noted. Competitive advantage now lies in the use of telecommunications and information technologies to support more flexible and decentralised business organizations. Three goals are driving this re-structuring:
The transformation of society is already well underway, said Johnston, commenting that:
The Demand for Teleworking
According to Johnston, the current interest in teleworking reflects a demand for greater flexibility and control by individuals over their working arrangements. It is not driven by technology, and it is certainly Europe-wide. For employees, the benefits seem to be:
For society as a whole, the benefits seem to be:
Johnston noted that the dominant objectives of regional development policy in Europe are now job creation in peripheral and rural areas, and in areas affected by recent reductions in defence activities, better healthcare, improved training opportunities, and better management of local resources. The number of jobs is small compared to the expected growth of employment in the more dynamic urban centres, and if only 10% of new urban employment could be decentralised, many of the problems of regional and rural economic development would be eased, and significant progress would be made in the decongestion of major cities.
Legal and regulatory constraints, particularly those inhibiting cross border telework within the EU, must be removed, argued Johnston, to encourage more flexible working patterns. Measures supporting "virtual businesses" will be a necessary part of the second phase of the consolidation of the European internal market.
Growth, Competitiveness and Employment
The central theme of the 1993 White Paper is unemployment in Europe. The unemployed currently count for 11% of the European workforce, with social exclusion affecting the under-25s and over-50s particularly. The solutions to this problem is not simple and structural change is slow, but the White Paper's key message is that there are strategies which, if pursued jointly by the member states and institutions of the European Union, can offer a return to fuller employment.
Flexible forms of work associated with a more decentralised "information society" offer greater competitiveness of European businesses and a better quality of life for Europe's citizens. Underlying belief in the ultimate benefits of the transition to an "information society", is the knowledge that the demand for information services is not saturated and can continue to expand without significant environmental impact. Intellectual resources expand, said Johnston, as people are freed from producing the basic necessities of life.
However, to it exploit the full potential of new information and communication systems, while addressing the problems of unemployment, demands greater flexibility in hours worked, and in who does what, where and when. It is also necessary to open up markets for small businesses, reduce the threshold cost for new service providers, and reduce the cost of returning people to regular employment.
Martin Bangemann's high-level group was established as a result of the Commission's conviction that new communications technologies and flexible working are mutually supportive when it comes to addressing Europe's problems. The Bangemann report (3), said Johnston, underlines the need to accelerate infrastructure liberalisation, the adaptation of tariffs and the judicial framework, network modernisation, and the launching of applications of common interest. The role of the public authorities would be to create a favourable climate for private sector investment.
The Commission transmitted a communication to the European Council and Parliament less than a month after the Bangemann report's recommendations had been approved by the Council. Towards the Information Society in Europe: an Action Plan (5), provides a framework for proposing initiatives relating to the information society and accelerating Europe's progress towards it. The four main lines of action are:
Work in the Information Society
Johnston said that European R&D programmes launched in 1991 had already laid the foundations for acquiring a better understanding of work in the information society. Teleworking development emerged as a major theme of research activities in advanced communications and telematics. In 1994, the first set of European Actions for stimulation of transborder telework reinforced and complemented these earlier activities (6). The actions which resulted from a call for proposals in June 1993 include:
Supporting actions involve:
The actions also involve the setting up regional help desks for organization s wishing to introduce telework, particularly across borders; the reinforcement of the EC Telework Forum; and the compilation of information on European trends in the development of telework.
A Wider Debate
The Commission recognises that the transition to an information society will profoundly change everyday working life, said Johnston, and that the challenges are substantial for all the social partners:
The information society may not deliver its promise if it is not adequately framed, said Johnston, and it needs strong support from European citizens if it is to "take off". The Commission considers it vital to ensure that opportunities to develop new and better jobs are fully exploited, and potential negative effects are addressed. In particular, Johnston stressed, the Commission believes that the full involvement of the social partners is an essential part of the process of coping with structural change.
Guidelines to facilitate the process of economic and social adaptation will be produced, and the Commission will take steps to ensure that effective evaluation is made of the expected overall qualitative and quantitative impact on jobs. It will prepare a report, said Johnston, to address the employment and wider social consequences of the development of the "flexible firm".
A Role of Unions
In the volatile environment of today and tomorrow, Johnston argued, new forms of work have downsides. The downside of flexibility is insecurity, and the downside of empowerment and greater autonomy is a loss of solidarity and the sense of belonging to an organization. This can be a problem for management if a workforce loses cohesion and staff no longer understand corporate goals.
The development of more flexible working practices must not been seen as a fragmentation of the bargaining power of employees, said Johnston, but as an opportunity for people to develop and use their skills more effectively, wherever they live. Teleworkers, Johnston said, need the representation and mutually supportive organizational framework which a union can provide as much, if not more, than traditional employees of large organizations.
But Johnston also encouraged labour organizations to participate in European actions and initiatives, arguing that it must be in the interests of many unions to become actively involved in the development of the European "information society", rather than risk declining with the base of traditional industrial employment.