25 young unionists from Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Serbia and Romania joined the second workshop of the ‘Young Social Dialogue Champions Academy’ in Turin, Italy, last week.
The event, part of the EU-funded project that industriAll Europe is carrying out with the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organisation (ITCILO ACTRAV), engaged participants in a foresight exercise that enabled them to envisage the effects of the twin green and digital transition on the ground in their countries, sectors and companies. Participants developed scenarios that highlight how the future of work in their sectors will look like in 2040. The outcomes varied from digitalised and green industrial workplaces, where workers enjoy quality jobs as a result of a good trade union representation, to grimmer outlooks of left behind places with weak union presence. Engaging in foresight is essential to develop preparedness and resilience, as it encourages out-of-the box thinking in an exercise of timely anticipation of change.
The foresight exercise not only focused on the future of work in the twin transition, but also on the future of trade unions. Young unionists are not only the future of the labour movement, but they are also the present. They are the ones who will experience the full green and digital transformation that has already started and is rapidly changing our industries. It is therefore essential that trade unions involve young members in the development of strategies to anticipate and manage the changes that our workplaces are going through as a result of this transition. Youth involvement is key to drafting an inclusive strategy for a Just Transition and fair digitalisation, because it allows unions to reflect on the needs of young generations.
Failing to include a youth perspective in trade union strategies that tackle the transformation risks pushing away young generations by making them feel as though their demands are not reflected through out trade union strategies. Transparent and democratic decision-making is essential to this process with youth representatives getting a fair voice at the table in trade union decision-making bodies. It is not enough to ask young members for their input if without giving them a seat at the decision making table. Green social movements of the past years, like Fridays for Future, have shown young people’s enthusiasm for the green transition, as they filled Europe’s streets during demonstrations. It is up to trade unions to meet them and get them on board in the labour movement. This is a must in every organising and recruitment strategy that aims to attract young workers and apprentices to the labour movement.
Isabelle Barthès, industriAll Europe’s Deputy General Secretary, said:
“The transformation cannot be successful without people on board. This is why it is so important to involve young workers. They have to be at the centre as their future is taking shape now”
“We are delighted to see the commitment and enthusiasm of our young members in the activities of this EU-funded project. It shows that young people are happy to join trade union activities when they are invited to them and when the events are tailored to their interests”
The twin green and digital transition is affecting all workers in industry and unions need to reflect the demands of all generations when pushing for a Just Transition and a fair digitalisation. We are looking forward to seeing the results of the foresight exercises, in particular the roadmaps that the young participants will develop during the online module of this workshop. The results will support the national trade unions in the anticipation and management of change on the ground, highlighting the added value of youth involvement.”