1. University of Strathclyde
Union Organisation in European Contact Centres – Experiences and Challenges
Professor Phil Taylor
University of Strathclyde
UNI Europa ICTS
23 October 2013
Rome

2. Introduction – From Call to Contact Centre
‘Contact centre’ - a distinctive organisational form that has transformed customer servicing
Technological ‘architecture’ has huge implications for structuring and pacing work, micro-management
Combination of ‘Taylorism’ and emotional labour
Work often experienced as pressurised and stressful
Economic crisis has generated cost-cutting, lean and ‘doing more with less’
‘Performance Management’ - ranking, forced distribution and Bell curve, PIPs, exits

4. Three Questions/Topics Concerned with
Influence and Effectiveness of Trade Unions
In what areas do unions have strengths and weaknesses in collective bargaining? What are the patterns of union denisty in ICTS across Europe?
What encourages contact centre workers to join unions? What dissuades them from joining?
To provide evidence from case studies of where workers have successfully organised.
Sources: 2 decades’ research, 16 completed surveys from affiliates

5. European Contact Centres in ICTS
UK – 1m., Germany – 262k, France – 270k, Italy k, Spain – 100k, Poland – 80k, Denmark – 70k, Belgium – 60k, Finland – 15k, Baltic States – small
Growth over a decade despite crisis and offshoring
CCs present opportunities and challenges for unions
Financial services and telecoms the largest sectors
Growth in ICTS notably in trend to outsourcing - 3rd party specialists (e.g. Teleperformance)
Lower (labour) costs and flexibilities mirrored in generally inferior Terms and Conditions

6. Collective Agreements and Union Density
Liberal Market Economies (LMEs) – UK and Ireland
Strength of collectivism and density in ‘incumbents’