The year 1996 was marked by a number of important pan-European telework activities which both reflected the status of teleworking at that time and were instrumental in themselves in moving the agenda forward.
The first of these was the Telework Congress: Chance and Challenge for Europe, organised by Infopartners SA, Luxembourg. The congress was held under the patronage of the President of the European Commission, Jacques Santer, in Luxembourg in June 1996, and with the participation of the Directorates General III, V, XIII and XXII. One of the main themes was that European work is undergoing radical change, sometimes, according to the views expressed, not fast enough to meet the challenges and exploit the opportunities, and at other times too fast so that turbulence, uncertainty and insecurity damage well-being and prosperity. There was some tendency for speakers to be either "hard optimists" who see the new technology as providing immense potential for work and growth and view with alarm calls for caution and regulation, or "soft pessimists" who see dangers ahead for individuals, especially the excluded, and who wish to proceed cautiously and to regulate and control the changes taking place. Some views, of course, also filled the wide gap between these extremes.
A large number of interesting telework visions were presented, alongside calls for passion, enthusiasm and a campaigning spirit, for example that telework should be treated like a garden where the grass-roots should be allowed to find their own spot in the sun and display their blooms and disperse their seed unhindered, enabled of course by sufficient fertiliser in the form of public funding. Economic and trade issues were also prominent with some claiming, for example, that telework creates more jobs than it destroys, that the telecoms sector is growing and that many new jobs are being created in Internet-related industries. Between 7.5 and 10 million jobs in Europe could be teleworkable even today it was claimed
New approaches were also given clear prominence, for example that we need to see telework as much more than working at home (as much thinking still takes as its starting point), and that it should be seen as closely related to teletrade/electronic commerce (i.e. enterprises trading electronically) and telecooperation (i.e. enterprises, individuals and governments cooperating electronically with each other). Telework, in this sense, will affect not just 10 million but the majority of Europe's workers in the future, and the point is not where the work is done but how it is done and for whom it is done. Seeing teleworking as contributing to new market innovations in the context of the global networked economy is central to this view, which has strong synergy with Europe's strategic target of creating jobs and work opportunities.
Another large set of issues discussed were social and educational, and how, for the individual employee, immense benefits can be obtained by teleworking. Few teleworkers in many of the pilots conducted wished to return to "normal" working once telework had been experienced, provided certain contractual as well as technical considerations were met. Other presentations were of the more cautious kind, stressing the dangers of social exclusion, the need to protect workers, raising issues of regulation and even proposals for a "bit tax" to compensate governments for loss of traditional tax revenue in the global networked economy where many electronic transactions are oblivious to national boundaries.
Indeed, the issue of regulation was one where there appeared to be most disagreement between the two camps. On the one hand, there were interesting examples of how previous attempts in history to regulate and control new technology and new markets had ultimately failed and had, in fact, damaged long term prosperity, and on the other hand strong arguments were presented that late 20th Century society should not repeat previous mistakes and should prevent rather than try to cure the pain and social exclusion which has always in the past accompanied major societal change. Everybody agreed, however, that telework could produce better and more rewarding work for the many, as well as contribute to growth and even more jobs. The disagreements there were lay in how to get from here to there.
Another main event of 1996 was a New International Perspectives on Telework workshop at the end of July in London, entitled From Telecommuting to the Virtual Organisation?, hosted by Brunel University, London, and the Work and Organisation Research Centre of Tilburg University, Holland. Although the aim of the workshop was to bring together an international group of researchers, making it somewhat more academic than many other telework events, a powerful set of multi-disciplinary presentations provided a unique opportunity to explore all aspects of the wide ranging significance of telework.
The organisers' rationale for the workshop was that, although teleworking and telecommuting have existed since the mid 1970s and a lot of work has been done, much of the discussion still tends to churn over the same old issues. Many of the concepts and issues associated with teleworking in the early days have outgrown their original technological and economic context, suggesting the need for a different approach in a broader perspective. As a consequence, the centre of gravity of the teleworking debate seems too often to be trapped in the early 1980s. Although many interesting articles and books have appeared, no systematic conceptual or theoretical approach to teleworking has been developed. The workshop was therefore convened to re-orientate the telework agenda.
Building on one of the Luxembourg themes that telework is much more than working at home, the workshop stressed what it saw as the sterile nature of such restricted understanding. It also rejected the view that telework is only about short term efficiency, reducing overhead costs and saving commuting time. Teleworking, if it is to deliver on its promise, needs to be more firmly anchored to the changing use of ICTs by organisations, for example in the context of the networked organisation, the virtual organisation, business process re-engineering, etc. This calls for a fundamental re-think of organisational structures and processes, particularly given the role ICTs have in facilitating new forms of integration, new working relations, a more effective utilisation of human resources and new forms of service innovation.
The workshop also supported the contention that successful teleworking, however defined, normally rests upon realistic market analysis and strong integration with the strategic goals of a business, its technology management, organisational design and human resource policy. At the societal level, policy makers need to see telework as a powerful tool for linking social, technical, economic, legal, political and environmental elements. An understanding of the temporal and spatial dynamics of organisational processes should be at the heart of teleworking analysis.
The success of the workshop in exploring the many ramifications of telework laid the groundwork for a second event in Amsterdam in September 1997.
The third main teleworking event of 1996 was the Third European Assembly on Telework and New Ways of Working (Working in a Wider Europe) held in Vienna at the beginning of November and organised by ECTF. Like the previous assemblies in Berlin (1994) and in Rome (1995), the Vienna event brought together many of the same people who had congregated in earlier years, and more, a mixture of academics, telework consultants, parliamentarians and local government staff, as well as practising teleworkers. Trades unions were better represented than in earlier years, as were experts from Central and Eastern Europe given Vienna's strategic position vis à vis this part of the continent, and the theme: "Working in a Wider Europe".
Industry was also present and contributed to many of the debates, for example concerning the costs involved in setting up home teleworkers and how to draw the line between what is the employers' responsibility and what is the employees' own private responsibility, and on how work and jobs are understood in society. It was emphasised that there is a need for individuals to act, rather than look for a job where someone else tells you how to act. If telecoms and work are liberalised, while having adequate protection of basic needs, then young entrepreneurs will be able to flourish and to build virtual companies, virtual schools, virtual communities of interest and virtual communities of relationships.
Many valuable and instructive examples of the employment effects of telework were given, such as the considerable employment opportunities being created by telework in the Hebrides Islands (off Scotland), and the sweeping employment changes in retail banking, already apparent in several European countries, and how this makes telework as purely home-based work an irrelevant side-issue.
Many existing jobs are disappearing from the High Street and new jobs are being created in "office factories" called Call Centres. Already, in the UK for example, there are estimates that 1 in 100 workers will be based in call centres by the year 2000. From the outside this might be thought to be conventional employment but inside it is quite different; the jobs are systems driven, and the systems determine who answers which telephone call and largely determine what happens to the call. Staff at call centres tend to be paid a flat rate wage, regardless of shift times and patterns, and many of the workers are employed on a part-time basis. Estimates indicate that there were 6,000 such centres in Europe by 1995 and that (without contradiction from the trades union leaders present) the unions appeared not to be noticing.
Perhaps one of the most valuable debates of the event concerned the danger that the shape of the Information Society would be determined simply by business interests, reflected in international trade agreements negotiated through the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the intellectual property rights organisation (WIPO). "Intellectual property holders will control cyberspace," it was predicted, and that concepts inherent in democratic societies, such as universal service provision, free speech and cultural development were at risk. The current international proposals for intellectual property rights were nothing short of "an act of imperialism" it was claimed.
One of the main concerns of the European Commission is "where new jobs will come from in the future", and "how do we get them in Europe".. The worrying trend of generally rising European costs (compared to other trading areas) is one which concerns politicians and employers across Europe. The urgent need to embrace new methods of working, which include teleworking, and expected cost savings was debated at some length.
During the Vienna event, there were successful videoconferencing links to discussants or similar events taking place at the same time in London, Bonn, Paris, Berlin and Budapest, as well as an inter-continental link to San Francisco. Coordinated through the Teleworker's Corner, located within the exhibition area, lectures in schools and universities, and so called open events organised by other organisations in some places in Vienna (by trade unions, women's associations, telecentres, etc.) were linked to the conference. It is planned to follow up the valuable annual tradition of the Telework Congress in Stockholm at the end of September 1997, this time, however, not during European Telework Week.
As during the first European Telework Week in 1995, the 1996 event was able to act as a framework for cooperation, this time for over fifty national and local events or initiatives throughout Europe. ETW96 built on ETW95 to achieve even wider public attention and, with European Commissioner Martin Bangemann acting as "patron", attracted the support of upwards of fifty private and public sector organisations, with supplier industry companies being particularly prominent. The goals of ETW96 were to:
Apart from the Vienna Congress (see above) a number of other major events took place during ETW96 at national level but which also attracted a substantial international audience. Prominent among these were the Telework UK ´96 Conference in London and the Telework Deutschland ´96 - Neue Wege zur Arbeit, both of which were successful in focusing specifically on issues of relevance to the national situation. For example, the London Conference in the newly developed down-town docklands areas was subtitled "increased profitability and improved lifestyle", clearly reflecting the fact that in the UK the target audience was the business community. In general, the conference showed that the UK corporate debate has moved on from discussion of telework pilot projects to the development and implementation of broader-based telework programmes. In Bonn, the issues and the target audiences were somewhat wider, including the social partners, administrations, government, etc., but also the stress was on business and trade opportunities. For example, there was much useful debate on working with the future, where it was stressed that telework will have a great influence on business and trade and the way we will work in the future. Various alternatives were mentioned, such as home office, working at home, telecottages and teleservice centres as future work places for the employees.
Apart from the events that took place in Vienna, London and Bonn, there were 52 registered events or initiatives in 10 member states during or very close to the first week in November 1996, considerably more that the 32 achieved in 1995 (see Annex 1). Twenty one of these were, however, in one country, Sweden, where considerable synergy has been achieved between the different telework interest groups and between different geographical areas. Despite this, the number of events is clearly on the increase and shows that the impact achieved in 1995 is being built upon and the momentum carried forward. Because of this success, and with a view to further increasing the impact of European Telework Week on developing understanding and practice in relation to telework in Europe, the European Commission announced their support for a third European Telework Week (ETW97) which will take place during the first week of November 1997.
During 1996, two major European-wide activities were launched, supported by the European Commission's ACTS Programme in DGXIII (see section 4.3.1 below): the DIPLOMAT European Charter for Telework initiative as a consensus activity, and the European Telework Development initiative as a dissemination activity.
The main objective of DIPLOMAT is to build consensus concerning specific Guidelines to support and enable Europe to better adopt, implement and benefit from increases in information technology enhanced distributed working. The initiative has created a European Charter for Telework, which is (until Summer 1998) now in the process of becoming signed by influential organisations and employers throughout Europe. This will lead to socially accepted adoption of telework, and in many cases to increased use of telework in their constituencies. The ultimate result will be the first pan-European agreement on Telework Guidelines.
In detail this is meant
According to its workplan, DIPLOMAT addresses Government Departments, Professional Institutes, Employers Organisations, Unions, Business Associations and other bodies. After having built Directories of potential signatories and identifying Telework Champions in these organisations, since January 1997 their cooperation is organised in Consensus Groups which are framed by the Terms of Reference of seven thematical areas in a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Guidelines regarding these thematical areas are drafted and discussed within the Consensus Groups started from January 1997. A DIPLOMAT Partner with experience and skills in a theme is engaging the organisations in their domain and working with them to reach a consensus on detailed proposals for Guidelines.
The thematical areas are:
Based on the MoU DIPLOMAT involves a minimum of 400 organisations in consensus development and discussion processes on the Charter and Guidelines. This results into a generic Charter, signed by representatives of employers' organisations, labour unions, professional bodies, SME associations, government departments and European institutions. These high level signatures will back what will be collectively developed: A decisive proposal for European Guidelines, pledged to accelerate telework and information society systems use to the best of all concerned. Consensus Group members are invited to join the Telework Guidelines Forum, starting from the Telework 97 Conference (September 1997 in Stockholm), and carrying on discussion, information exchange and knowledge creation about new ways of working beyond the lifespan of DIPLOMAT.
To assist the processes of consensus building and Guidelines development DIPLOMAT is creating an up to date and comprehensive data-base of facts from half-yearly Implementation Questionnaires charting increased telework and ACTS technology take-up in the constituent organisations across Europe. From this research and ongoing surveys DIPLOMAT will produce a final Employment and Economic Impact Report.
Contact: Josef Hochgerner, e-mail: j.hochgerner@magnet.at
World Wide Web: http://www.telework-forum.org/diplomat/uk.
The basic tenets upon which ETD builds its activities are that:
Given this background, the overall objectives of ETD through its outreach and communication activities are to:
ETD is achieving these objectives by developing the European Telework Online service as the world's leading online service for telework, teletrade and telecooperation (website: http://www.eto.org.uk; e-mail enquiries: eto-info@eto.org.uk). This includes an online information service, support to public and private online fora/discussion lists, direct access to an online calendar of events and activities and to an open resources database, and an open host site for market-based activities and EU programmes. Pro-active media communications are also being developed to a high level supported by NEWSdesk (a specialist online service used by about 5,000 journalists, editors and commentators) and IPMG (a professional PR agency). This encompasses a paper newsletter in cooperation with the ETHOS project of the Telematics Applications Programme, telephone enquiry points in each country, speakers and presentations at public events and conferences, the provision of interviews, articles and background briefings, and a forthcoming video, audio and picture library.
ETD's national outreach activities are implemented through a network of National Coordinators, each of whom is active in telework in their own countries and engaged with and responsive to local agendas and needs. This network assists ETD in building a full European overview of telework, ensures that ETD is rooted in practical requirements and real world issues, and also oversees a seed corn budget for local stimulation and awareness initiatives.
Other initiatives strongly supported by ETD include:
ETD has also recently begun to support the European Association for Community Networking, a local communities networking initiative established to engage citizens in the Information Society and empower them to make good decisions about it. Another important initiative is the ISdAC (Information Society disAbilities Challenge), which started as an ETD interest group and is now a dynamic support and pressure group for and about people with disabilities in the Information Society. A further major initiative is ETD's sponsorship of EITO (European Information Technology Observatory), which provides an annual report on the market for ICTs and is supported by DGIII, OECD, CeBIT, SIMO, SMAU, EUROBIT and ECTEL. ETD is supporting the EITO Task Force and will provide a telework section for the yearbook for 1998.
ETD's aim is to provide services that are open to all in both electronic and non-electronic formats but with the avowed intention of encouraging take up of the electronic services in order for users to become fully engaged in the Information Society through telework, teletrade and telecooperation.
Contact: Jeremy Millard, e-mail: 100117.1157@compuserve.com, or Horace Mitchell, e-mail: 100126.2412@compuserve.com. World Wide Web: http://www.eto.org.uk/etd.
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