Elections

Playing Three-card Trick with voters? And the winner is … the Alliance?

Elections, Electoral reform, Local Staff Committee, Luxembourg Print This Post

In theory, you have the choice between 3 different lists in the elections for the Local Staff Committee Luxembourg. In practice, however, the true choice will be between 2 alternatives: Generation 2004 (list 1) and the ‘old’ trade unions (list 2 and list 3) who 15 years after the 2004 reform still continue to claim extraordinary privileges for the few chosen.

Chart 1

At a closer look, the picture is even worse. Both lists are dominated by the Alliance (‘Confederal Alliance of Free Trade Unions’) [*] of “independent trade unions”, which mean small, at the Commission level often non-representative organisations. (NB: A trade union or staff association is considered representative if it represents at least 6% of staff at Commission level.) Since only representative organisations have access to resources for their operation, non- Continue reading Playing Three-card Trick with voters? And the winner is … the Alliance? →

Unofficial minutes of the General Assembly in Luxembourg of 9 July 2019

Electoral reform, Luxembourg, Newsletter #37 - Sep 2019 Print This Post

The Local Staff Committee (LSC) Luxembourg has not yet made public the minutes of the General Assembly that took place on 9 July 2019. We would like to provide you therefore with our unofficial minutes about this Assembly and with information that you may not read from the official minutes. But first let us go back to how the story began… Continue reading Unofficial minutes of the General Assembly in Luxembourg of 9 July 2019 →

The electoral system of the Luxembourg LSC is flawed and should be changed!!!

Elections, Electoral reform, Local Staff Committee, Luxembourg, Newsletter #36 - Jun 2019 Print This Post

Trade unions and staff associations (OSPs) representing almost three quarters of staff in Luxembourg but having a minority (30% of seats) in the current the Local Staff Committee (mandate 2016-19) are convinced: The electoral system must be changed towards a proportional distribution of seats. A proportional seat distribution is necessary to revive true discussion and consensus-finding among the plurality of opinions as well as the possibility to bring in new ideas to the Local Staff Committee (LSC) by all members. Continue reading The electoral system of the Luxembourg LSC is flawed and should be changed!!! →

Brussels Local Staff Committee Elections

Elections, Newsletter #32 - Dec 2018, z Newsletter article Print This Post

(click on graph to enlarge)

As the majority of you probably noticed the Election of the new Local Staff Committee of Brussels (LSC BXL) took place at the end of October with a turn-out of 66% (14 391 votes casted out of 21 586 eligible voters).  Generation 2004 scored some 30.23% of list votes and 23.76% of the preferential votes, which translates into 7 seats out of 27 in the LSC Brussels and continuous climb on the representative charts (line in green). Continue reading Brussels Local Staff Committee Elections →

Elections of the Outside Union Local Staff Committee

Elections, Newsletter #32 - Dec 2018, z Newsletter article Print This Post

For the first time in the short existence of Generation 2004 the colleagues based in the EC delegations outside the EU have been able to choose Generation 2004 candidates on their ballot. Traditionally, the delegations have been a stronghold of the established unions. Thus, many (not us!) were surprised with Generation 2004’s good result of about 15% of the votes. This result, because of the electoral system which is different from the one in Brussels and most probably needs to be updated, translates only into 1 seat out of 14 in the Staff Committee of the delegations. Nevertheless, now that we are in the “stronghold”, we are going to do our best to reform it, as we have done in Brussels for the past 3 years.

Generation 2004 would like to thank to all who voted for us and invites the others to engage with us to work in favour of the delegations’ staff.

ABC of Staff Representation and Social Dialogue at the EC

Elections, Newsletter #31 - Nov 2018, z Newsletter article Print This Post
There’s a more up-to-date version of this glossary here.
A somewhat sarcastic alphabetical guide of Staff Representation and social dialogue at the EC

This special edition of Generation 2004 Newsletter is devoted to colleagues in Brussels or working in delegations Outside the Union now called to vote for their local sections of the Staff Committee. It recollects however essential information for all other colleagues who have already voted this year (Ispra and Seville), will vote next year (Luxembourg) or later on (Karlsruhe, Geel, Petten, France), unless a new structure of the Staff Committee is put in place through a reform in preparation. It sheds light on several aspects of staff representation and social dialogue at the EU, and offers some reality checks for your better awareness. Continue reading ABC of Staff Representation and social dialogue at the EC →

Fact checking: Outside Union Elections

Elections, Newsletter #31 - Nov 2018, z Newsletter article Print This Post

You might be bothered by all the emails in last couple of weeks asking you to vote. With all the promises and all credits that everybody claims to have exclusive rights.

Well, we are bothered with the non-factual parts of those messages as they really sometimes sound to good or bad to be true.

This is the latest of the Outside Union elections.

The candidates of so called independent and free trade union for the staff employed outside the European Union are saying Continue reading Fact checking: Outside Union Elections →

Parachuting

Elections, Newsletter #28 - Apr 2018, z Newsletter article Print This Post

It looks like the parachuting season will soon go back to full speed. Probably it has something to do with the nice warm weather and »less« with the quickly approaching EU elections.

Anyway, dear colleagues, please do not hesitate to inform us in case you spotted a fully equipped parachute jumper or skydiver. It is always nice to ask this fearless people for advice how to fall so quickly from the blue sky without any injuries.