Extraordinary Congresses of ELA Federatios

Jul 24, 2013
ELA has embraced the challenge to turn small and large companies alike into real negotiation scenarios

The extraordinary congresses held on 4 July marked the culmination of the organisational adaptation process whose outcome is that ELA now has 3 instead of 4 professional federations.  On the one hand, a new industry and construction federation, the "ELA Industry and Construction Federation", has been created and includes the Metal federation, the construction sector and the industrial sectors of the former Hainbat federation. On the other hand, new sectors have joined the ELA-Gizalan Federation (Public sector services) and ELA-Zerbitzuak Federation (Private sector services) as a result of this internal reorganisation. The congresses of the three federations concluded with overwhelming support for the proposed organisational adaptations.

The General Secretary of the ELA Industry and Construction Federation will be Unai Martínez (the former General Secretary of ELA-Metal) and the Deputy General Secretary Luis Federación ( the former General Secretary of ELA-Hainbat). Mirari Irure will continue as General Secretary of ELA-Zerbitzuak and Igor Eizagirre as General Secretary of ELA-Gizalan.
These changes have sought to adapt the organisation to react efficiently to the latest collective bargaining and labour reforms whose purpose is to make it easier for management to slash jobs, lower salaries and worsen working conditions. These reforms have empowered the employer and have weakened the collective and individual rights of the working class, done away with the level playing field and checks and balances that existed up to now.
Apart from being a great gift to management and an attack on the rights of the working class, these reforms are a huge organisational challenge for the trade union movement overall: to turn small and large companies alike into real negotiation scenarios The sole effective alternative to defend labour rights is to unionise companies and work centres.
Unionising and organising involves recruiting members, making sure the trade union units at company level function well and, based on a correct balance of power, negotiating and getting good agreements and setting limits on management's goal. Unionising is likewise the only possible option for the trade union itself if it wants to continue to be autonomous, not dependent on public funding and effective in trade union action.
At the XIII Confederal Congress, held six months ago, ELA undertook to “embark on an organisational reflection to adapt our structure in order to be effective in trade union work. This organisational adaptation is an initial step, but the reflection process is going to remain permanently open. ELA is going to closely monitor the effectiveness of what has been decided and what can continued to be improved as "getting future organisational adaptations right is going to depend - as has been the case in the past - the future effectiveness of the trade union. And that is what is at stake for the trade union and the Basque working class.

The extraordinary congresses held on 4 July marked the culmination of the organisational adaptation process whose outcome is that ELA now has 3 instead of 4 professional federations.  On the one hand, a new industry and construction federation, the "ELA Industry and Construction Federation", has been created and includes the Metal federation, the construction sector and the industrial sectors of the former Hainbat federation. On the other hand, new sectors have joined the ELA-Gizalan Federation (Public sector services) and ELA-Zerbitzuak Federation (Private sector services) as a result of this internal reorganisation. The congresses of the three federations concluded with overwhelming support for the proposed organisational adaptations.The General Secretary of the ELA Industry and Construction Federation will be Unai Martínez (the former General Secretary of ELA-Metal) and the Deputy General Secretary Luis Federación ( the former General Secretary of ELA-Hainbat). Mirari Irure will continue as General Secretary of ELA-Zerbitzuak and Igor Eizagirre as General Secretary of ELA-Gizalan.These changes have sought to adapt the organisation to react efficiently to the latest collective bargaining and labour reforms whose purpose is to make it easier for management to slash jobs, lower salaries and worsen working conditions. These reforms have empowered the employer and have weakened the collective and individual rights of the working class, done away with the level playing field and checks and balances that existed up to now.Apart from being a great gift to management and an attack on the rights of the working class, these reforms are a huge organisational challenge for the trade union movement overall: to turn small and large companies alike into real negotiation scenarios The sole effective alternative to defend labour rights is to unionise companies and work centres.Unionising and organising involves recruiting members, making sure the trade union units at company level function well and, based on a correct balance of power, negotiating and getting good agreements and setting limits on management's goal. Unionising is likewise the only possible option for the trade union itself if it wants to continue to be autonomous, not dependent on public funding and effective in trade union action.At the XIII Confederal Congress, held six months ago, ELA undertook to “embark on an organisational reflection to adapt our structure in order to be effective in trade union work. This organisational adaptation is an initial step, but the reflection process is going to remain permanently open. ELA is going to closely monitor the effectiveness of what has been decided and what can continued to be improved as "getting future organisational adaptations right is going to depend - as has been the case in the past - the future effectiveness of the trade union. And that is what is at stake for the trade union and the Basque working class.