Vorstand

Stockholm, September 1st 2011

Sören Niemann-Findeisen

Director Strategic Organizing Projects

IG Metall: Restructuring for Change

- Organizing and Recruitment -

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1960s to 1980s

Campaigns and conflicts to better the living and working conditions from the 60s to the early 80s

Successful as countervailing power

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Defensive struggles since mid 80s

On the defense: Roll-back sets in

Structural Change and Neo-Liberalism

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Today

Unions on the retreat:

• Density dwindling, collective bargaining coverage diminishing

• The old consensus of „Corporate Germany“ (Deutschland AG) has broken down

Since more than 20 years we are focussed on defensive struggles:

• A lot has been achieved politically and on the material side, but we couldn‘t stop diminishing relevance

• Fewer companies with works councils and collective agreement each year

• Our organisation is aligned to service a shrinking number of union structures inside companies

Organizing and recruitment is out of focus

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Focus on building organisational power • Restructuring IG Metall to be closer to the members and be more participation oriented

• Build in a new dimension of our policy to become an organizing and recruiting union: Fostering service (political support for activists and member services) as well as organizing and recruiting

• No new structure but adjusting our structures to become better performing and more efficient, mainly by clear responsibilities on the different levels of the organisation

• A slimmer and more efficient structure at the headquarter to free resources for direct means

Guiding line for resposibilities: from bottom to top• Firstly: the task to organize is due to the local union

• Secondly: locals and districts are supported by the districts and the headquarter to fulfill this task with analysis of potencial/research and education

• Thirdly: In challenging cases (employer hostility for instance) districts or the headquarter can take over direct resposibilities. This is always done in consultation with the local union

Restructuring for Change

More activities on organizing and recruitment: campaigns/projectsNew Strategic Investment Fund that builds up to 20 Mio. annually

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Restructuring for Change

Restructure headquarter-

Resposibilities and -

tasks of the different

levels

New

Resource architecture

structures & instruments

Quality work in the -

locals/branches

Development of -

political service for -

corporations

New instruments for

service and for

organizing/recruit.

Strengthening

activists/lay officials

Development of -

trade union -

education

Development -

member support -

in statutes

Internationalisation -

of union work -

enhancing internal

work structures -

Union management -

and staff development-

March 2010:

End 2010/

Early 2011:

Weitere

wichtige

Themen -

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Focus Organisational Strength of Strategic Investment Fund

Priorities of organizing and recruitment

1. Growing and future industries (renwables, e-mobility)

2. Special target groups (youth, professional engineers)

3. Changing value chain (contract/agency work, production service)

4. Organisational strength and collective bargaining (large corporations, ability for strike action, new works councils)

Our 7 districts are in the process of developing their regional strategy along these priorities set by

the executive

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Implementing Organizing/Recruitment:Large central or regional projects

Wind turbine manufacturing • Centrally run, 11 organizers plus 1 lead and 1 project director, direct deployment in

locals, executive departments, districts and locals remain politically responsible, project does work on the shop floor and builds strategy for industry

• Most comprehensive organizing approach

Growing industrial clusters in South-Saxony• Project of three locals co-ordinated by district, team of 4, aim of new works councils,

base building, membership growth

• Working closely with servicing officers to integrate new companies and activists in a sustainable way

Solar industry (spring 2012)• Projects in three industrial clusters, 6 organizers/officers, support of locals, districts, co-

ordination and PR/lobbying by executive

• Collective bargaining and lobbying of particular relevance

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Implementing Organizing/Recruitment:Supporting locals, building up competencies

Regular organizing network and coaching meetings• Only for locals with active small scale projects, focus to enable direct exchange of

practitioners, qualification, case-related mutual consulting, 30 of 164 locals participating, 3-4 times a year for 1,5 days plus conferences, main aim to work on the decisive points of a bottom up campaign on the shop floor

Qualification scheme for officers• Modules on organizing methods (basic and advanced), whole program consists of 9 days of

training, more than 200 participants so far

Qualifying trainees (junior officers)• Course of 8 days on founding new works councils and organizing methods

Qualifying activists• introductory courses for shop stewards on methods

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Thank you for your attention!