As the discussions continue between the Council, the Commission and Parliament (the “trilogue”) regarding revision of the European Works Council directive, what problems is Verizon’s EWC still facing?
There’s still the case before the Dublin High Court, dealing with the problem of access to justice for EWCs in Ireland. The hearing has been scheduled for 1 to 3 July. I hope the outcome of the trilogue will solve this problem of access to justice, and in particular, the issue of recovering legal costs.
At the same time, we’ve seen the first signs of a new EWC agreement being negotiated – bear in mind that the current EWC is operating on the basis of the directive’s subsidiary requirements – with management promising to begin discussions. However, I’m still concerned about the slow pace of the process, given that our request already dates back to December. Nevertheless, we hope for an agreement to be finalised that will solve all of the difficulties we’ve encountered in recent years, and which led us to take legal action on multiple occasions in order to assert the EWC’s legal rights, firstly before the UK courts, and then in Ireland, after the company appointed its management representative there. I sincerely hope that a new agreement will be beneficial to both parties and will bring all of our disputes to an end.
However, question marks remain over whether management is acting in good faith, because in early December, it informed us of plans to close a business in 2025. In April, we were given an update on this plan, with the announcement that a buyer had been found for this business. We’re giving favourable consideration to this news. Yet we also deplore the fact that the decision has already been taken, without any consultation regarding the social consequences of this move – either for employees who will be leaving or those who will remain. This means we’ll have to submit an opinion without receiving answers to the questions we’d asked, with the aim of enlightening our European colleagues who are affected by this plan.
A question for… Jean-Philippe Charpentier, Secretary, Verizon EWC
IR Notes: an independent, reliable and balanced briefing note
IR Notes is an independent, reliable and balanced briefing note on industrial relations and labour law in Europe.
Published in 6 languages and sold by subscription, this newsletter gives you access to concise, targeted and practical information on the major themes of social Europe and transnational social dialogue.
With our experts and national correspondents, we adopt a dynamic, practical and useful approach to European social monitoring. We select the most relevant topics, which are a source of cross-disciplinary and inspiring ideas.
Other IR Share Services
We are called upon to devise training programmes based on needs expressed by a number of companies; we publish analyses and create tailor-made training activities for groups, works councils, trade unions and law firms. Our most recent projects are described here
IR Research
As Eurofound’s National correspondent, IR Share provides information on working conditions, industrial relations and the labour market to support the EU institutions and bodies, Member States and social partners in shaping social Europe, as well as promoting social dialogue on the basis of comparative information and research.
IR Training
Members of the IR Share team are regularly called upon to devise training courses. We deliver these either directly or working together with partners, to ensure that the training is tailored to the exact needs expressed.
IR Doc
IR Doc is a multilingual resource centre providing documentation on labour law and industrial relations at European Union and Member State level, including collective agreements concluded by the social partners at European, sectoral and transnational company level.
IR Club
Since 2011, the European Works Councils Club has sought to co-construct the foundations of a European social dialogue that can meet the social and environmental challenges faced by transnational companies.
Get in Touch
Follow us on Social Media
