Social dialogue: more transparency to build trust

The bill author izing the government to reform the Labor Code by ordinance has just been adopted by the National Assembly. However, we will have to wait until the end of August for the content of the ordinances to be presented to the social partners.

Marie-Anne Verdier, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier; Christophe Godowski, Toulouse 1 Capitole University and Emmanuelle Nègre, University of Montpellier
The new government's stated aim is to decentralize social dialogue at company level, reserving legislative intervention for fundamental rights only. Beyond the doubts that may be expressed about the relevance of such a projectHowever, it comes up against a central stumbling block: the mistrust that reigns in many French companies today.

A significant proportion of employees do not trust their managers

80% of managers questioned in a recent study consider that social dialogue is improving in their company, but less than half of employees share this opinion. Only 55% feel that they enjoy a relationship of trust with their managers.

"They keep telling us that business is bad. They tell us to tighten our belts. But can we believe them? We have no way of checking, we're being pushed around...".

When we interview works council members, as we did in research conducted throughout 2016, this lack of trust is obvious.
The situation is particularly delicate when downsizing is on the agenda, quickly turning into a power struggle. Managers have mastered the art of presenting their company's accounting results to justify their social policy. In a study published last year, Jennifer Boutant and Marie-Anne Verdier from the University of Toulouse showed that these professionals were able to significantly downplay the company's results (by an average of 4%) prior to the announcement of a downsizing plan.
Research by Emmanuelle Nègre and Marie-Anne Verdier, co-authored with Charles Cho and Den Patten, highlights the frequent discrepancy between the reasons given by management to justify such operations and the company's actual economic situation.
Employee representatives are naturally suspicious of such manipulations, but are generally unable to decipher the accounts. The resulting mistrust is massive, and immediately reduces the scope for constructive social dialogue.

The company's situation eludes employees

Since 1945, however, the law has allowed works councils to call in a chartered accountant to gain a precise understanding of their financial situation and redress the balance of power with management.
These experts can be called in not only for special events, but also every year, as part of the review of the annual financial statements. However, only around one in three works councils uses the services of a professional accountant.
How can we explain this low take-up of a system that should be open to all?
The fact that the company (quite rightly) has to bear the cost of these assignments is an obstacle, particularly for SMEs, which make up the bulk of the French economic fabric.
Some managers drag their feet and are tempted to put pressure on elected representatives. They don't hesitate to use a form of blackmail, arguing, for example, that the money spent on this expense could be better used to pay bonuses.
In such a context of pressure and conflict, some works council members prefer to focus on social and cultural activities, rather than on economic prerogatives. In larger companies, the use of chartered accountants to assist works councils is more common.
Although accustomed to the arrival of such experts, management is not enchanted by this exercise in transparency. This is a pity. Indeed, when chartered accountants regularly meet with employee representatives, we find that the relationship between employees and management gradually evolves.
The former have a better understanding of the economic stakes involved, and hold certain cards in their hands when it comes to discussing the company's decisions. The latter may be interested in the insights provided by an independent expert. In this way, a certain level of trust begins to develop, helping to establish a genuine "partnership" between the two parties. social dialogue.
Such a development is not out of the question. Considering the involvement of sales professionals in works councils, not as a theoretical right but as a real necessity, means systematically informing elected representatives of this possibility.
Our research shows that non-use of the expert is sometimes simply due to a lack of knowledge of the system. Improving the skills of elected representatives is now a major challenge in the attempt to rebalance the balance of power between management and employees.
Marie-Anne VerdierSenior Lecturer, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier; Christophe GodowskiMaitre de Conférences HDR en Sciences de Gestion, IAE Toulouse, Toulouse 1 Capitole University and Emmanuelle NègreSenior Lecturer in Management Sciences, Montpellier Research in Management, University of Montpellier
Visit original version of this article was published on The Conversation.