The shop steward plays an important role in many Danish businesses, not least for management, which regards shop stewards as important "sparring partners". In general, the shop steward is respected by both employees and management, though many call for more response from their constituents. The stewards' influence on trade unions is greatest at local level, but diminishes higher up the hierarchy. These are some of the findings of a major new survey of Danish shop stewards, published in September 1998.
A major survey of the working conditions and profile of Danish shop stewards - the Shop steward survey 1998 (Tillidsrepræsentantundersøgelsen 1998) - was presented on 28 September 1998. The survey was carried out for the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisationen i Danmark, LO) by the Industrial Relations Research Group (FAOS) at Copenhagen University, and a total of 7,704 shop stewards (tillidsrepræsentanter) from 20 LO-affiliated trade unions filled in questionnaires. In addition, 50 shop stewards and managers were interviewed. Further general details of the survey are provided in DK9811191F: here, we focus on some of the specific findings.
Cooperation is central
At many workplaces, the survey finds that the shop steward plays a central role as a mediator and communicator between management and employees. If the relationship between shop stewards and management were to be described in one word, it would be "cooperation". Some 70% of shop stewards see making the cooperation between employees and management work as one of their most important tasks. Among respondents, 81% state that the relationship with management is characterised by trust, and 82% feel that it is easy to have a dialogue with management. It is also a unanimous view on the part of employers that the shop steward is an important "sparring partner".
Some 55% of the shop steward respondents see it as an important task to ensure that there is a good climate of cooperation between their constituents. It might be expected that this was a task for management, but the survey shows that such tasks are often informally the responsibility of the shop steward.
Even though the relationship between management and shop stewards is generally characterised by trust and cooperation, not everything is rosy. Of the respondents, 32% state that they experience disputes with management, while 52% do not feel that they have such disputes. Moreover, considerable variations can be identified between unions regarding these issues.
Even though the overall impression is of cooperation, there is also a considerable group of stewards which feels that management tries to individualise the relationship between management and employee. Four out of 10 thus think that the management wants a more direct relationship with the employees without involving shop stewards and trade unions, and 62% feel that the management would introduce individual wages and salaries if they could decide to do so on their own. This would seem to indicate that the great respect which the shop steward enjoys from management is simply based on this being the way in which management can achieve the best results. If conditions had been different, management might have chosen another and less cooperation-oriented model. A large majority of shop stewards do not experience large conflicts of loyalty in their relationships with employees and management, but a minor group of around 15% experience such conflicts in relation to at least one of the parties.
Backing by constituents essential
As many as 96% of respondents state their workmates' backing is essential to ensure the shop steward's strength vis-à-vis the management, and a majority find that this backing is more important than the protective rules laid down in collective agreements. A great majority of shop stewards, 75%, are also of the opinion that their constituents have a positive view of their work as shop stewards, while only 2% have the impression that their constituents have a negative view of their work. However, these are just impressions, as many shop stewards call for feedback from their constituents. Employees do not give their views on the work of the shop steward, and 57% of the stewards state that their constituents' interest in trade union issues is slight.
This makes it even more important for the individual shop steward to be able to share his or her experiences with others in the same position, be they other stewards at the workplace or people they meet on training courses.
Employees' limited interest in trade union issues is also shown when the individual shop steward is asked to assess the possibilities of finding a successor. Half think that finding a successor for the position of shop steward would be difficult, 39% are doubtful and only 11% think that finding a successor would be easy.
It can consequently be said that shop stewards do enjoy the backing of their constituents, but that, conversely, this backing must be said to be passive.
An interesting finding of the survey is that one-third of the shop stewards advise their constituents on social or private matters. Such caring tasks seem widespread among shop stewards, but it was a surprise to many that this is also part of the job. Two-thirds of the respondents feel that "social guidance" will become an important shop steward function in the course of the next 10 years. Management may also benefit from shop stewards performing such functions, for example when dismissed employees receive psychological support.
Trade unions and unofficial agreements
Shop stewards and the trade union movement are inextricably linked, but the survey seeks to examine what exactly their relationship is.
Shoe stewards' contact with and influence on the local trade union is generally good, but it becomes weaker higher up the union hierarchy. Only 22% of respondents feel that they have a possibility of influencing their trade union, whereas 66% feel that they have some form of influence on local trade union work. Half the respondents state that there is a union club at the workplace, and even though the interest in trade union issues is generally low, there seems to be quite a high level of activity in the clubs.
Some respondents regard being a shop steward as a career. Nearly one-fifth state that they could imagine making a career for themselves in the trade union movement, while an equivalent percentage do not know, and 59% reject the possibility of such a career.
Of the respondents, 18% report having entered into "unofficial" agreements with the management - ie agreements which are contrary to the collective agreements which are in force. These unofficial agreements are often an expression of an opinion held locally that central collective agreements are restrictive in relation to the requirements on employees and/or management. They may thus be seen as part of the decentralisation trend in the collective agreement system which has taken place in the past 10-15 years. The Danish bargaining system is characterised by "centralised decentralisation" - ie the framework for the agreements is laid down centrally, but is fleshed out at a decentralised level.
However, the survey shows that shop stewards believe that not all matters should be decided at a decentralised level. More than 50% are of the opinion that matters such as working hours, holiday rules and the working environment should be decided centrally, and more than 75% think that rules on dismissals, maternity/paternity leave and the shop steward's working conditions should be decided centrally. By contrast, a majority think that pay, overtime work and supplementary training should be bargained at a decentralised level.
However, decentralisation also means that trade unions may lose influence on a number of collective bargaining issues at the central level. This makes it even more important for the trade unions that their representatives at the local level, in particular shop stewards, are competent negotiators with close contacts with the union organisation.
The profile of the average shop steward
Women are slightly underrepresented among shop stewards: 42% of the shop stewards surveyed are women, whereas about 50% of the members of LO-affiliated unions are women. The average age of the shop stewards is 44 years, and it is a characteristic feature that the person concerned has worked for many years at the workplace in which he or she is the shop steward - 13 years on average. The average shop steward has been a shop steward for five and a half years. In terms of education, 67% have eight to 10 years of schooling, 15% have attended an upper secondary school or the like and 17% have seven years of schooling. Politically, there are representatives of all parties among shop stewards, however, most belong to the left wing, as 83% vote for the Social Democratic Party or for parties to the left of it.
Of course, these figures conceal large variations. Some unions have only female members - notably the National Union of Female Workers (Kvindeligt Arbejderforbund i Danmark, KAD) - whereas others are heavily male-dominated. Furthermore, shop stewards are found among both 20-year-olds and 65-year-olds.
Most shop stewards, 73%, took on the role because their workmates asked them to, and a similar number, 74%, are satisfied with the position of shop steward. Some 64% would stand for re-election, whereas 22% do not know whether they would stand. Every seventh shop steward does not want to continue.
Family matters may be a factor when a person considers whether he or she wants to be a shop steward. A large majority, 83%, live in permanent cohabitation with a spouse or partner, and divorces actually seem to be less widespread among shop stewards than in the population in general. However, this is not to say that juggling family life and work as a shop steward is without problems: 28% think that their work as shop stewards may cause problems vis-à-vis their family life.
Commentary
In light of recent political developments in Denmark and the major industrial conflict in May 1998 (DK9805168F), one of the items in the survey that arouses particular interest is the question of union democracy. The conflict in May showed that the original joint mediation proposal to complete the bargaining round, accepted by the member unions of LO and the member federations of the Danish Employers' Confederation (Dansk Arbejdsgiverforening, DA), was not supported by the majority of union members and was thus rejected in a referendum. To many commentators, the rejection was not so much a rejection of the content of the agreement as a protest against the conduct of the collective bargaining as such. Many workers felt that LO, by accepting the proposal, bypassed their opinions on issues such as holidays, even though this was a substantial demand from most workers (DK9807178F).
The survey of shop stewards shows that it is not only the rank-and-file members who experience some kind of overruling of their wishes. Quite a few shop stewards also feel that their influence on central matters is limited, and it must be a problem for some of them to defend some of the decisions taken at the central level. The political developments of the last eight months are a reminder to the union movement that democracy in the trade union movement is essential if legitimacy is to be upheld. (Steen E Navrbjerg, FAOS)