TRANSFORMATION PROCESS IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY AND THE CHALLENGES FOR THE UNIONS
“Transformation process takes place with problems to be solved, new business opportunities, new working styles”
The seminar started with the opening speech of our Vice President Uysal Altundag.
Altundağ said, “The transformation that started with the production of vehicles that can also work with electricity in the Automotive Industry is actually a long journey… The transformation is not just sectoral. Obviously, it has the effect of changing even the export balances in the world. To give an example, Nickel raw material, which is actively used in vehicle batteries… Raw materials such as nickel, whose importance will increase even more, will reveal new global effects.
“As workers, we should strive to act together around the world, to share and update our information frequently”
Altundağ concluded his words as follows: “What will we workers do against all this, how should we understand the transformation. How should we evaluate the opportunities it will bring? With this opportunity, we will discuss cooperation and opportunities with our friends from Europe and try to make sense of this transformation together. We are extremely happy that the transformation in the automotive industry is being talked about in a country other than the countries that lead the transformation, in which such valuable participants participate. I am happy to say this on behalf of Turkey and also on behalf of our union Turk Metal.
This seminar is a step in our future meetings and discussions for our unions working together under the umbrella of IndustriALL Global and IndustriALL Europe. Prior to this meeting, high-level meetings were held with our esteemed President Pevrul Kavlak and IG Metall's President Mr. Jörg Hofmann, where we discussed in detail the challenges posed by the transformation process in the automotive industry for unions. As the workers of the world, we should not forget this. As workers, we should strive to act together around the world, to share and update our knowledge frequently. While we are looking for ways to overcome the problems that the new era will bring together, we must be ready from training plans to our organizational policies in order to seize the opportunities that will arise and turn them into benefits for the benefit of the employees”.
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Then, the seminar speeches started under the moderation of Georg Leutert, Director of IndustriALL Global Union, Automotive and Aerospace Industry. Kemal Özkan, Assistant General Secretary of IndustriALL Global Union, took the floor in this episode. Özkan:
“We must strive for the transformation to work in our favour. How is the transformation, how will it be, what is it, how is it managed, what kind of strategy is needed? How is employment protected? Against us, not for us. We want you to sit at the table with us and do it together. This is important for fair transformation," he said.
Afterwards, Georg Leutert, Director of IndustriALL Global Union, Automotive and Aerospace Industry, who is also the moderator of the program, gave his speech. Leutert evaluated how he can benefit from the new supply chain due diligence legislation in Germany and the EU (European Union) at the Seminar on “Fundamental Worker Rights and Trade Union Rights in Turkey” organized by IndustriALL Global Union on September 5-6, 2022 in Istanbul. Then, Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions(TURK-IS) Research Expert Dr. Güven Savul took the floor. Savul made an assessment of the negotiations on the future of jobs from a union point of view. After the presentation, Claudia Rahman from the International Department of the IG Metall took the floor and she said, “Going beyond discussing the terms. Future investments, future technologies and future skills. When and how?" made his presentation entitled. The last presentation of the day was made by Erencan Martı, an expert of our Union. Martı's speech, “Challenges in technological transformation and Collective Bargaining processes in the Turkish automotive industry, worker and trade union rights in global supply chains. After his presentation on “Where are we in the current situation, current supply chain problems and cases”
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Following the seminar program, Mahsun Turan, Head of Collective Agreements Department of Turkish Metal Union, took the floor. Turan made his presentation titled “The reflections of technological transformation on collective bargaining processes in Turkey”. Then, representatives from Daimler Truck, MAN, Ford, Stellantis, Audi and IndustriALL Europe made evaluations in the panel on "Strategic transformation in strategic CBA process at company level". In the last speech of the day, in the section titled “Exchange on results from the break-out sessions and Conclusions from Day 1” Turk Metal Financial Secretary Murat Salar gave a speech in which he evaluated the day.
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The second day of the seminar started with the speech of Helmut Lense, Advisor to the Turkish Metal Union. While evaluating the first day of the seminar in his speech, Lense moderated the organized panel. Ferdinando Uliano from Italian FIM-CISL, President of PSA European Works Council Philippe Gilleron, Sabine Kiefer from IG Metall & Audi and Renault Turkey Human Resources Director Tolga Görgülü made their presentations in the panel titled “Best practices in managing the transformation in the automotive industry”. The seminar was concluded with this speeches.
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Benjamin Denis, Senior Policy Adviser from IndustriALL European Union, Barbara Arsieni from Italian FIM-CISL, Frederic Touboul and Michel Souday from the French CGT-FTM Union, Andre Gunia from IG Metall, Hans Lawitzke from Ford Otosan Germany, Benjamin Gruschka and Katharina Von Hebel, Daimler Truck's Michael Brecht, Jörg Lorz and Susanne Brossmann, Man Truck Bus Germany's Heval Bengü Al, İsmail Gıloulouts, Ercan Mintaş, Audi Germany Sabine Kiefer, MAN Turkey General Manager Ufuk Doğrusöz, Oyak Renault HR Director Murat Tolga Görgülü, Mercedes-Benz HR Director Betül Corbacıoğlu, Mercedes-Benz Truck HR Manager Burçak Yetgin, Siemens HR Director Aslı Kunur, TOFAŞ A.Ş. Human Resources Director Orçun Sarıca, Valeo HR Director Alkan Yıldırım, Karsan Human Resources Manager Yönem Oktay, Ford Otosan HR Director Ali Rıza Aksoy, Ford Otosan Eskişehir Factory HR Manager Sinan Salı, Marelli Mako Human Resources Manager Alpay Akkaya and our Union Branch Presidents, shop-stewards and experts attended.
