What is "EWC - fit for change"?

The project addresses the following person from EU countries, particularly from the partner organisations involved in the project:

1. Experts on training and further training in the trade unions and third parties cooperating with employee representatives and/or trade unions with experience in the field of European employee participation (participants of the expert workshops);
2. EWC members in manufacturing and service industries, who (if possible) have a leading position in the EWC and can, therefore, play a strategic role in restructuring processes (participants of the transnational EWC workshops);
3. Works council consultants from trade union organisations or external EWC consultants respectively with experience in process management of change processes in the corporate field.

Activities

Overall the following activities are planned: three partner meetings for project management, one thematic kick-off workshop, three workshops for experts in EWC training and further training, three transnational EWC restructuring workshops, one international concluding conference.

Furthermore, the production of two documents is planned:

• Manual for training and further training modules to reinforce the anticipation capacity of European Works Councils during company-wide change processes
• Booklet on European Works Councils in restructuring and change management processes (including check lists and best practices)

Network

A network for the development of training and further training measures during restructuring will be established with the participation of the trade unions, (further) training organisations and external experts involved in the project.

The workshops shall strengthen the skills of European Works Councils in transnational restructuring processes with the result that they can influence the decision making within companies and that an economically reasonable and socially responsible management of change processes can be organised within functioning mechanisms of social dialogue.

Results

The results shall be presented, among other occasions, at an international EWC conference to a broader audience.

The continuing usage of concepts, training modules and materials shall be taken into consideration during their development. They are supposed to be used in broader contexts and shall be integrated into regular EWC (further) trainings in the partner organisations and other providers of EWC training upon termination of the project.

Furthermore, a long-term cooperation of the expert network beyond the project duration is planned in order to consolidate exchange and, wherever possible, to integrate new organisations from countries not yet involved in the project.