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Summary of Session 3

Study Circle BUL1 (Plamen Dimitrov)

For our session 3 were invited two persons from KNSBs Institute for Trade Union and Social Recearch (ITUSR): Mr. Grigor Gradev - Director of ITUSR and Mrs. Vaska Dimitrova-Georgieva - recearcher in ITUSR.

Short summary of discussions

We started with brief presentation of the summaries from other stury circles - South Africa, Spain, Estonia and Alanas Comments.

Our similarities with Estonian experience are connected with wage systems in TNCs. The wages in Bulgarian TNCs are higher then in the public enterprises. In this way they attracted the best skilled workers. This will couse closing of small and middle enterprises which will be not more competitive from the overmentioned point of view.

Opinions on reading materials of Session 2:

1. Shells "Ecological War" in Nigeria

This is not the main point to attack the TNCs in Bulgaria. Our enterprises have old and dirty technologies and when factories are bought by the TNCs, they introduce some improvments and decrease in sertain stage pollutions. In some sectors the environment requirements are higher than the European standarts, but the size of fines in Bulgaria are low and insignificant for the TNCs.

2. Daewoo: Corporate Blackmail?

We think that more transperancy of information for deals and privatisation is needed. The access of the workers, Trade Unions and NGOs to documents related to the sale of the respective enterprise is also very important. This is more useful for our country.

3. McDonalds: Using Kids to Sell Burgers

Bulgaria just now start to experienced of globalisation. There are some cases in which the labour legislation and trade union rights are violated by sub-contractors of TNCs but the described practice is mainly available in our south neighbour countries like Turkey and Greece. For us is useful to learn some practical approaches how to avoid the using the childs labour. We have not relaible statistics about number of ilegal employed children.

Why doTNCs roam world?

We have considered the general factors which the TNCs are looking for when they are deciding to invest in our country. We have also made a list of them. The general factors are:

• 1.Competition (access to new markets, sphere of influence, low labour costs, access to cheaper raw materials or components)
• 2. Conditions of investment (tax system/regime, environment and labour legislation, import/export regime)

Some participants account the reasons of investments in their factory:

Nadka, "Heidelbergner Zement" :

• 1. Access to Bulgarian market
• 2. Policy of government
• 3. Access to cheaper raw materials
• 4. Low labour costs
• 5. Lower requirements concerning environment and labour protection and safety

Dimitar, "MDK" - Union Meniere:

• 1. Access to cheaper raw materials
• 2. The available new technology
• 3. High skilled workers who are able to operate with the new technology
• 4. Saving expenses for education and qualification
• 5. Environment: heigh standarts but low fines

Georgy , "Kraft J. Sushard" ("KJS"):

• 1. Low labour costs
• 2. Access to Bulgarian and foreign markets
• 3. Ecologycal conditions
• 4. Availability of fixed assets
• 5. Good specialists and high skilled workers
• 6. Liberal legislation

What can we do about TNCs?

Unfortunately TU and NGOs have not enough information about the TNCs. The TU could receive information by International Trade Union Federations. The TU have to give signals of illegal done deals. There is a need to create requirements for buying of enterprises by TNC. This includs:

• Availability of good collective agreement before TNC buys the enterprise
• The collective agreement has to be valid by the time fixed
• The TNC has to be obliged to sign that it will respect the valid collective agreement
• The TU has to be active participant in the sale-trade of the respective enterpise.

For example the enterprise "Soda - Solvay" - Devnya by support of National Fereration of Labour "Chemistry and Industry" and ICEM has received the information connected with the potential buyers. They have prepared their position concirning more eligibal buyers and after that they have chosen the Solvay.

Evaluation

The discussion was not profound but at the some time the concrete reasons for the movement of TNCs over the world were outlined. The time is short and we cant present all information. The participants want more and concrete information about their enterprises. We hope that the next session will show us the possible ways for TUs reaction.

Links Conserning this summary

• Shell in Nigeria (Shell Official)
• Shell in Nigeria (Frieds of Earth info)
• Unicef (Info about Child Labour)

Study Circles other summaries

[Session 1]/ [Session 2]/ [Session 3]/ [Session 4]
[Session 5]/ [Session 6]/ [Session 7]/ [Session 8]

Summaries of session 3

• BAR1 (Ulric Sealy)
• BUL1 (Plamen Dimitrov)
• EST1 (Tiia Kask)
• PER1 (Juan Carlos Vargas)
• RSA1 (Martin Jansen)
• SPA1 (José Luis Ferrándiz)
• SWE1 (Ola Niclason)

• Alana's Comments

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