Annual Report 2006 (pdf) - EuroMaint Rail

The role of employees on the Board
Bertil Hallén is one of the three employee representatives on EuroMaint’s Board of Directors. As a union spokesperson
it is his task to protect members’ interests. As a member of the Board he is involved in managing the Group’s development.
So is there any conflict between these two roles? How does the collaboration between the union organisations
and the Group work?
Relations between Group management and the union are good. This is
a brief summary of Bertil Hallén’s view of relations between the parties.
“The most important thing is that we now always receive information
very early on, as soon as possible. Also there’s an ongoing
dialogue, where I’ve noticed that the managers of both companies
and the Group genuinely listen and take our arguments on board.”
Agreement but not about everything
When the Group’s long-term strategies are being discussed, a
consensus is usually reachable. For example, all parties consider
investment in development important. For personnel it is important
to be advanced in their technical and skills development as it creates
opportunities for a good pay situation.
EuroMaint has a co-operation agreement
“This doesn’t mean we agree on everything, but that we come to an
agreement in negotiation. The difference is that we’re involved from
an early stage and have more of an opportunity to affect decisions,
although this can also mean we have to be involved in the process
ahead of unpleasant decisions.
“Then there are some issues where we will never agree completely,
such as overcapacity and pay,” says Bertil.
He explains that it can sometimes be difficult to be in the know
about tough decisions at an early stage. He is not always able to
inform union members about what he knows straight away.
“My priority is always the best interests of the members. The
trick is to know what’s best in the long term. Afterwards I always have
to be able to explain what has happened, and why. Information is an
important part of my role, and something that can always
be improved.”
Personnel have a lot of knowledge
Bertil Hallén has worked in the rail transport industry for almost
30 years and he has been an employee representative on the Board
since 2001. He currently sits on the Boards of AB Swedcarrier and
EuroMaint AB.
“It wasn’t easy being a union representative on the Board in the
beginning. It took a while for everyone to grow into their roles, and
I found that many of the external representatives didn’t understand
very much about our operation, although this has improved a lot.
“I think employee representatives have contributed a lot of knowledge
to the Board. We look at how the company is performing from
a completely different perspective and we can explain what needs to
be done.”
Bertil says that it is not always easy for an individual employee to
bring his or her manager’s attention to areas that should be improved.
In such cases it may be simpler to take the issue to the union
which can ensure the matter is dealt with at a higher level.
Positive development
The main change Bertil has witnessed over the past five years has
been the fact that everyone seems more involved now, which is closely
linked to the clearer control.
“It’s taken a while to get this far, but now it feels very positive. This
is largely thanks to the management, they’ve really made an effort to
ensure everyone can see the bigger picture. They’re also very clear
about where we are and where we’re heading.
“Another positive thing is that EuroMaint Industry has now become
part of the Group, it’s good to have another leg to stand on. There is
potential for excellent results. I think that from the union’s position
we can offer plenty of good advice for its development.”
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