Act IV: Partners in Success STANDUP: THE MOST VISIBLE WAY THAT AMERICAN WORKERS HAVE INVESTED IN
CORPORATE AMERICA IN RECENT YEARS IS THROUGH MAJOR WAGE CONCESSIONS IN RETURN FOR AN OWNERSHIP SHARE IN THE COMPANY.SUCH MAJOR CORPORATIONS AS UNITED AIRLINES, ALLIED SIGNAL, PITTSBURG PLATE GLASS, U.S. SUGAR AND
MANY OTHERS, HAVE TURNED TO ESOPS, EMPLOYEE STOCK OWNERSHIP PLANS TO TRY TO REVITALIZE THE COMPANIES OR EVEN AVOID BANKRUPTCY. IN ALL, 11 MILLION AMERICAN WORKERS OWN A SHARE IN 10,000 AMERICAN CORPORATIONS, AND
MORE THAN A 20% STAKE IN AT LEAST A THOUSAND OF THESE COMPANIES. IN RETURN, LABOR HAS OFTEN DEMANDED SEATS ON THE CORPORATE BOARD, AND POWER SHARING WITH MANAGEMENT. ONE PRIME EXAMPLE IS NORTHWEST AIRLINES WHICH, IN
1993, WAS ON THE VERGE OF BANKRUPTCY. ANDERSON: it was a frightening thing to be going through not realizing how all this was going to come out.DASBURG: Very very difficult
period of time, around the clock negotiations, went on for weeks. WOERTH: We were three hours from filing. It was real. ANDERSON: At the appointed time, I would be standing in front of the bankruptcy court judge in
Delaware putting a $9 billion company with 42,000 employees into bankruptcy. DASBURG: We would have filed our bankruptcy that morning, had we not reached an agreement.
NARRATION: THE NIGHT BEFORE THAT FATEFUL MOMENT, NEGOTIATIONS MOVED TO CEO JOHN DASBURG'S HOME. DASBURG: My wife went in to go to bed and one of the labor negotiators had
collapsed from exhaustion and was asleep in the bed.ANDERSON Ben Hirst called from John Dasburg's house. And said stand down. We've reached a deal with the pilots and all the other, all the other stake holders in the
company had all come together and basically signed off on a term sheet to restructure the company. We wouldn't be filing bankruptcy. NARRATION: WHAT MADE THE FINAL DEAL
POSSIBLE WAS A SWAP. THE UNIONS GAVE UNPRECEDENTED WAGE AND WORK-RULE CONCESSIONS. IN RETURN, THE OWNERS GAVE LABOR THREE SEATS ON THE CORPORATE BOARD AND 30 PERCENT OWNERSHIP OF THE COMPANY. WOERTH: It was a hard bargaining. We contributed real money. You know $900 million of real wages and working conditions.DASBURG:The concessions were clearly a sine qua non. Had it -- had it not been for
the concessions, no one else would have -- would have come to the table. NARRATION: WHAT MADE THE DEAL SO SURPRISING WAS THAT IN THE ‘’70S AND '80'S, MANAGEMENT AND LABOR AT
NORTHWEST HAD BEEN NOTORIOUS FOR ACRIMONY AND CONFRONTATION. WOERTH: Northwest had a reputation of having some of the worst labor management relationship in our industry. No
respect. No trust whatsoever. They even used to call Northwest Cobra airlines, they'd strike at anything. NARRATION: IT WAS A FORMULA FOR DISASTER, ACCORDING TO SENIOR VICE
PRESIDENT BEN HIRST. HIRST: If you operate like that, then eventually, in -- in a business like this one, which is - it’s a network business, it’s a personal business, it
requires the cooperation of many people doing complex things -- business is going to break down. NARRATION: IN THE PAST FOUR YEARS, THE CHANGE INSIDE NORTHWEST HAS BEEN
DRAMATIC...GIVING NORTHWEST SEVERAL PROFITABLE YEARS IN A ROW. ANDERSON I think everyone realized, the employees, the board, the share holders, that our success Is inextricably
linked. You know how goes the company, so goes the union. So goes the union and employees goes the company. NARRATION: UNION AND CORPORATE OFFICIALS GOT TO KNOW EACH OTHER
DURING THE '93 RESTRUCTURING. BUT DUANE WOERTH, THE PILOT UNION'S BOARD MEMBER, SAYS THE FIRST TIME UNION MEMBERS SHOWED UP FOR A BOARD MEETING WAS CLEARLY A SHOCK TO NORTHWEST'S BIGGEST STOCKHOLDERS. WOERTH: The unions had extracted 30% of their company. And they did not like that at all. And that was you could sense that, a dead person could sense that, walking in that room. It was cold. I had taken
money out of their pockets, out of children's trust funds. You could taste it. They had grave concerns how this was going to work... NARRATION: BUT WHETHER AT THE FULL BOARD OR
AT FINANCE COMMITTEE SESSIONS LIKE THIS ONE, PRESIDENT JOHN DASBURG QUICKLY LEARNED THE VALUE OF LABOR DIRECTORS WHO NETWORK INSIDE THE COMPANY AND GIVE HIM FEEDBACK, ESPECIALLY ON COMPANY PROBLEMS. DASBURG: ...I’m sure quite often board members hear things.They have chats with me, and I think they’re being used as channels, and that’s very healthy. WOERTH: Well, John Dasburg and I probably talk at
least four times a week. Sometimes we’ll talk three times a day. NARRATION: ON AN ISSUE WHERE PILOTS SAW THE POTENTIAL LOSS OF PAY, THE USE OF SMALLER REGIONAL JETS, UNION BOARD
MEMBERS PLAYED A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN TALKING MANAGEMENT OUT OF BUYING TRISTAR, A REGIONAL CARRIER WITH NON-UNION PILOTS.
WOERTH: there were financial reasons not to do this, besides the lack of union pilots. And when we put that all together, the rest of the board was uncomfortable and that’s why the deal disappeared. SMITH: But you all, you in particular, were the ones who raised the problem. WOERTH: ... We were the ones raising the red flag first.DASBURG: ..... We get a
perspective, we get expertise and a labor leader can -- can give you feedback. A labor leader can say, you know, this decision makes a lot of economic sense, but have you taken into consideration how this particular
labor group might think about this decision. So you need this perspective....You can't make good decisions without them. NARRATION: DASBURG SAW SUCH ADVANTAGES THAT HE PROPOSED
EXTENDING UNION MEMBERS ON THE BOARD FOR TEN MORE YEARS. WOERTH: You have to remember that these type of men and women are so results-oriented, ... if it's producing results,
they want more of it. If it's not producing results, they want less of it. They have had good results so they against all their inclinations they want more of it. NARRATION:
ANOTHER PIONEERING IDEA AT NORTHWEST IS THE SO-CALLED FARM-OUT COMMITTEE, WHICH FOSTERS COOPERATION BETWEEN PEOPLE LIKE RICHARD ANDERSON, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT FOR TECHNICAL OPERATIONS, AND MARV SANDRIN, A LEADER OF THE
MACHINISTS UNION. THE FARM-OUT COMMITTEE GIVES THE UNION A CHANCE TO REVIEW EVERY MANAGEMENT PLAN TO OUTSOURCE MAINTENANCE WORK. SANDRIN: When the machinists union finds out, we
then come back with an assessment of our own to see if we can do it as cost effective in house as they think the vendors can do it. NARRATION: THE FARM-OUT COMMITTEE HAS KEPT
SEVERAL BIG CONTRACTS IN-HOUSE. THE LARGEST INVOLVED WORK ON THE PYLONS OF BOEING 747 PASSENGER JETS. THE FAA REQUIRED ALL AMERICAN AIRLINES TO MODIFY THEIR PYLONS AFTER SEVERAL ACCIDENTS, INCLUDING THIS CRASH OF AN EL
AL CARGO JET INTO AN APARTMENT BUILDING IN AMSTERDAM. THE CAUSE WAS AN ENGINE FALLING OFF THE PLANE BECAUSE OF A FAULTY PYLON.PYLONS ARE THE LARGE METAL STRUTS THAT HOLD THE FIVE-TON ENGINES ON A 747’S WINGS. THE FAA
INSISTED THAT ALL PYLONS BE REMOVED FROM THE PLANES AND STRENGTHENED. NORTHWEST, LIKE OTHER AIRLINES, INITIALLY PLANNED TO HAVE THAT WORK DONE IN SINGAPORE. SULLIVAN: The first
reaction was if the pylons were going to go out the whole airplane was going to go out there for the checks, all of our checks, the work that we do here now would also be going out to Singapore. Smith: You lose a lot of jobs. Sullivan: Absolutely.Sandrin: The pylon project over a 6 year period, equates to 500,000 man hours of work, equates to an additional
100 mechanics, and an approximately 80 million dollar payroll. Smith: Was it a big deal? Sandrin:
It was an extremely big deal, the biggest deal, the biggest part of the deal was the company just didn't bring it in. Is that it was practically in Singapore and came back. NARRATION: WHEN THE MACHINISTS MADE A PITCH FOR THE WORK, MANAGEMENT WORRIED THAT IT WOULD COST MORE AND TAKE LONGER THAN IF DONE IN SINGAPORE. Selby: This is the
upper link, okay, and the upper link actually ties the upper portion of the pylon...Sandrin: The pylons are not simple. They are extremely complicated. There were things we needed to do such as changing some work
rules, to bring the cost down. There were some things the company was not aware of. Or we could show them how to bring the cost down... NARRATION: THE UNION DEPENDED ON A UNIQUE
EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION...WHAT PEOPLE AT NORTHWEST CALL 'THE OPEN KIMONO' POLICY.. ANDERSON: Open kimono means whatever information I have about this farm out decision Marv is
yours. I'll share a contract with you, I'll share the labor rates. I'll share what the outside people are telling us. Whatever you want, we'll provide to you.Sandrin: They gave us basically carte blanche to see how
Singapore was going to do it. We were then able to assess it and come up with some cost figures of our own which the company agreed with. Sullivan: We felt we could do it, and we could do it better than somewhere
else... NARRATION: IT WAS A TOUGH JOB. THE FIRST PLANE TOOK FIFTY DAYS. BUT EVENTUALLY THEY GOT THE PYLON OPERATION DOWN
TO 23 DAYS - GOOD ENOUGH TO KEEP THE WORK AT NORTHWEST...AND GET HUNDREDS MORE MACHINISTS HIRED. Sullivan: ...there was a kind of challenge there, when it....was brought to
us....we took it and collectively we really worked hard to get it done. NARRATION: THE NORTHWEST EXPERIMENT IS ALSO WORKING FOR PILOTS. THE PILOTS, WHOSE ELEVENTH HOUR AGREEMENT
IN 1993 AVERTED BANKRUPTCY, HAVE SEEN THEIR STOCK TRIPLE IN VALUE. WOERTH: From a near disastrous situation in 93, a mere 4 years later we're in a very good position. We've hired
a lot of pilots, we've hired a lot of employees, we're a better airline. We got job security and frankly we got our money back through the stock.BELOKOPITSKY: We feel empowered to be, you know, on the team and part
of the co-owners, so to speak and actually, we are with our stock ownership. So, I think it's a more comfortable and win-win atmosphere than it used to be -- us against them, you know. NARRATION: AND TO CEO JOHN DASBURG... LIKE DON SAPPINGTON AT HATHAWAY SHIRTS.. THE RIGHT STRATEGY FOR STAYING ON THE CUTTING EDGE IS COLLABORATING WITH YOUR WORKERS.
DASBURG: Democracy didn't work without -- without certain rights being guaranteed, what we call a bill of rights. And in my view there is somewhat a bill of rights to capitalism. You just simply must take into
consideration all of the various interests in society in the enterprise. And if you fail to do that, capitalism will fail. SMITH: That's a big statement, not only the company,
but the system will fail. DASBURG: The system will fail. And we, as CEO's, have a responsibility to see to it that we take into consideration all the stakeholders. Act V: Narrowing the Gap NARRATOR: THE IDEA OF A BILL OF RIGHTS FOR CAPITALISM SOUNDS ALMOST REVOLUTIONARY BUT
ONE EXAMPLE OF A COUNTRY THAT HAS WORKED ONE OUT IS HOLLAND.AND THAT APPROACH IS AN ESSENTIAL INGREDIENT OF WHAT MANY EUROPEANS CALL THE DUTCH ECONOMIC MIRACLE. ...HOLLAND’S REMARKABLE REBOUND FROM THE ECONOMIC
STAGNATION OF THE SEVENTIES AND EIGHTIES. TODAY, THE DUTCH BOAST AN ENVIABLE RECORD - SEVERAL YEARS OF SUSTAINED ECONOMIC GROWTH...AND ONE OF EUROPE’S LOWEST RATES OF UNEMPLOYMENT AND HIGHEST LEVELS OF PRODUCTIVITY.
STANDUP: IN PLACES LIKE THIS CHARMING UNI VERSITY CITY OF MAASTRICHT, THIS MEANS NOT ONLY A HIGHER STANDARD OF LIVING, BUT A GOOD LIFE - MORE LEISURE TIME, THE SHORTEST WORK YEAR OF ANY INDUSTRIAL NATION...500 FEWER
HOURS ON THE JOB THAN THE AVERAGE WORKAHOLIC AMERICAN. STANDUP: WHAT’S MORE, THE DUTCH WITH THEIR UNUSUAL SOCIAL PARTNERSHIP OF BUSINESS, LABOR AND GOVERNMENT, HAVE FOUND A WAY TO SPREAD THE BENEFITS TO MORE PEOPLE.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT POWERS THEIR ECONOMIC MIRACLE IS GREATER USE OF PART-TIME AND TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES, BUT GIVING THEM THE SAME PROTECTION AND BENEFITS AS REGULAR WORKERS AND OFFERING THEM BETTER CAREER POSSIBILITIES
THAN IN AMERICA. NARRATOR: KEES HOGENBIRK IS TYPICAL OF THE NEW DUTCH WORKFORCE. HE IS A TEMPORARY EMPLOYEE OF IBM NETHERLANDS - 18 MONTHS INTO A FOUR-YEAR CONTRACT. KEES... IS ALSO WHAT THE DUTCH CALL A FLEX-TIME
WORKER. HE SPENDS ABOUT HALF OF HIS WORK-TIME VISITING CLIENTS... OR WORKING OUT OF HIS HOME OFFICE.... KEES CREATES HIS OWN WORK SCHEDULE, FITTING IT TO THE NEEDS OF HIS WIFE AND TWO SMALL CHILDREN AS WELL AS HIS
EMPLOYER. KEES: It's ordinary household work ... SMITH: And who's cooking Sunday night supper?
KEES: It's my turn. SMITH: Your turn? KEES: Yes, it's my turn. NARRATOR: THE DUTCH SYSTEM
LEAVES KEES AND HIS WIFE FEELING ECONOMICALLY SECURE ENOUGH TO MAKE THEIR HOME LIFE THEIR FIRST PRIORITY. THEY ADAPT THEIR CAREERS TO THEIR FAMILY LIFE. Kees: There are days that
my wife goes out early in the evening. That means I have to be at home at 5:00 looking after the children. I put the children to bed. ... I spend one or two hours additionally on the system, uh, communicating or writing
proposals, etcetera. Our goal is not to, you know, pursue the highest possible career, and then for your personal benefit and ego. We could do that, of course, but then you don't have time for each other.
SMITH: Is this a common way of thinking in Holland? KEES: I would say, yes, it's starting to become a more common thing, and what I feel,
there's a little more openness to discuss these things in the Netherlands. It fits in our way of communicating, our culture, I guess. NARRATOR: KEES’S WIFE, ILSE GANZEBOOM,
WORKS FOR VOLVO GROUP FINANCE. AFTER 16 WEEKS OF PAID MATERNITY LEAVE, AN ENTITLEMENT OF ALL DUTCH MOTHERS, ILSE NOW WORKS PART-TIME. SHE’S GETS HOME EVERY AFTERNOON BY 1:30.
ILSE: The two boys, they're very young, and I want to be home in the afternoon, and, you know, not having to stress ... not having to get into stress to get home in time and prepare dinner and get them into bed.
SMITH: If you did this for several years, could you then go on with a good career? ILSE: I actually think I can with the company I'm with now. I
have the possibility, even now, yes, to take a more responsibilities, to make more hours, to travel a bit for them. At the moment I choose not to. But I can see that in a few year's time, the boys are less dependent on
me, and, I think, yeah, I can pursue a career. SMITH: Is there a stigma attached to being a part-time or a flex time worker in Holland?
KLASS: On the contrary, it is very popular. Many people combine two jobs at home. The man works, the wife works. And they all seek more than to increase their income.... and get as much income as we can. People try to
find a balance between what other requirements life gives to them. NARRATOR: BALANCE IS KLAAS DE VRIES’ STOCK IN TRADE. HE IS PRESIDENT OF HOLLAND’S SOCIAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL
WHICH COMBINES LEADERS FROM LABOR, MANAGEMENT AND GOVERNMENT TO BARGAIN OUT HOLLAND’S SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC POLICY.SMITH: What is the function of this social economic council in Holland? KLAAS: .... to make sure that we would have a broad consensus, we would strive for a broad concensus of the directions that our policies should follow.. SMITH: Where
does this come from? I mean, is this an old habit that the Dutch have had for centuries, or is it new? KLAAS: Well, I guess there are some roots in the past. Holland has always
been a country in which people try to find some consensus amongst each other, there are very little differences between classes. NARRATOR: A CONSENSUS STRATEGY ENABLED THE DUTCH
TO BREAK OUT OF ECONOMIC STAGNATION. IN 1982, ALL THE MAJOR FORCES REACHED A NATIONAL ACCORD.. BUSINESS AGREED TO A SHORTER WORK WEEK TO SPREAD JOBS AROUND ......LABOR AGREED TO SLOWER WAGE INCREASES AND FEWER STRIKES
... AND GOVERNMENT CUT SOME - BUT NOT TOO MUCH - OF HOLLAND’S SOCIAL SAFETY NET. TODAY, THE DUTCH ARE THE ENVY OF EUROPE. THEIR BOOMING ECONOMY COMBINES AMERICAN-STYLE EFFICIENCY WITH SOCIAL JUSTICE. THE DUTCH WANT THE
GOOD LIFE, BUT THEY DON’T WANT PROSPERITY BUILT ON THE BACKS OF THE WORKING POOR.AT THE HEART OF THEIR SUCCESS FORMULA IS A WORKFORCE THAT IS ROUGHLY 40 PERCENT PART-TIME OR TEMP. KLASS: People value free time enormously. They enjoy cultural things and they want to enjoy that. So it is a popular way of finding a new life. SMITH:And can you have
a real career as a flex time worker? KLASS: Absolutely. Yes. And it's not only for simple jobs. It's also for jobs with very high qualifications. I mean, they have doctors who
work 12 hours a week, lawyers who work part-time. SMITH: Even managers?
KLASS: Managers also, yes, I guess, but of course, not ministers in government, and not presidents of Social Economic Councils. NARRATOR: AS IN AMERICA, TEMP AGENCIES ARE
THRIVING IN HOLLAND. THE RANDSTAD AGENCY HAS THE LARGEST PAYROLL IN HOLLAND - OVER 300,000 PEOPLE ARE ON ITS BOOKS EACH YEAR. BUT DUTCH LAW AND BUSINESS PRACTICES SUPPORTING MIDDLE CLASS ECONOMIC RIGHTS ASSURE DUTCH
TEMPS HUGE ADVANTAGES OVER AMERICAN TEMPS. MOST AMERICAN TEMPS NEXT TO NO BENEFITS. LISTEN TO WHAT THE DUTCH GET. RANDSTAD EXECUTIVE ED BOLK. BOLK: They are socially insured for
everything -- health, and doctor, of course. They have free hours for doctor visits and for compassionate leave and holidays. So there is no difference between a flexible worker and a permanent worker from the point of
view of social insurance... SMITH: So you see your clients as not just the companies but also the workers. BOLK: Yes, of course . We are
a broker service. We are rendering our service to the workers and to the clients at the same time. And we have, at the same time then, to protect both parties, the interests of both parties. NARRATOR: MOST DUTCH WORKERS GET THEIR FIRST JOB THROUGH A TEMP AGENCY...WHETHER THEY’RE LOOKING FOR HIGH-LEVEL SERVICE CAREERS AT IBM...OR AN ASSEMBLY JOB IN AN AUTO PLANT.THROUGH A TEMP AGENCY, TANYA
CROMBACH GOT TRAINING AND A JOB AT NEDCAR WHERE SHE WORKS THE AUTO ASSEMBLY LINE. SMITH: Technically, are you an employee of Nedcar or are you an employee of the temp agency?
TANYA: Temp agency. SMITH: I see. Now do you, what kind of pay and benefits do you get? Do you get same as the regular workers here or different? TANYA: It's the same as us. NARRATOR: DESPITE HER TEMPORARY STATUS, TANYA FEELS SECURE ENOUGH ABOUT FUTURE WORK FOR HER TO BUY A HOUSE WITH A FRIEND. TANYA: It's about 4 or 5 rooms. A big living room. SMITH: How many bedrooms? TANYA: Four. SMITH: Four bedrooms - you’re planning on a big family? TANYA: Not yet. No, not yet. NARRATOR: TANYA’S CONFIDENCE ABOUT THE
FUTURE STEMS FROM HOLLAND’S CONSENSUS COMMITMENT TO INSURE ENOUGH JOBS FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS. HER COMPANY, NEDCAR, IS A PRIME EXAMPLE OF HOLLAND’S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY.AFTER WORLD WAR II, COAL MINES, AND THE
ECONOMIC ACTIVITY THEY GENERATED, PROVIDED 75 PERCENT OF THE JOBS IN SOUTHEAST HOLLAND. BY THE 1970S, THOSE MINES BECAME UNCOMPETITIVE. RATHER THAN SUBSIZIDIZING THEM, AS GERMANY DID WITH ITS MINES, THE DUTCH LET THE
COAL MINES CLOSE. INSTEAD THE GOVERNMENT INVESTED FIVE BILLION DOLLARS IN CREATING NEW INDUSTRIES TO UNDERPIN THE REGIONAL ECONOMY. KLAAS:......everything accumulated in
legislation granting enormous amounts of money, but also pledging a continuous effort to not let that region down but to make sure that within 5, 10, 15, 20 years, there would be a new industrial environment.
NARRATOR: JAN EISENGA COMES FROM ONE OF THE MANY THOUSANDS OF COAL-MINING FAMILIES WHO NOW LIVE IN SNUG MIDDLE CLASS HOMES, THANKS TO THE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY.
SMITH: Nice to meet you. NARRATOR: EISENGA TOOK ME HOME TO MEET HIS FAMILY... EISINGA: .... all the houses here are a miners' colony, we
call that. They are all together in one neighborhood. NARRATOR: JAN’S FATHER WAS WORKING IN THE MINES WHEN THEY SHUT DOWN. THE GOVERNMENT RETRAINED HIM AND HE GOT A JOB AT NEDCAR. NOW, 20 YEARS LATER, JAN ALSO WORKS
AT THE AUTO PLANT. SMITH::What’s the feeling in this area about the way the government and the public private-partnership worked? I mean, is this... people feel this is the right
role for the government to play?Eisenga: Yes, yes. SMITH: What would happen if they hadn't done it? Eisenga: A high unemployment rate,
a very high unemployment rate.For a very long time. SMITH: And that would mean these houses, maybe, wouldn't look like this?
Eisinga: That's for sure. NARRATOR: AT NEDCAR, THE GOVERNMENT’S GOAL WAS TO CUSHION THE SHOCK OF THE MINE SHUTDOWN AND, OVER TIME, TO PRIVATIZE THE COMPANY. ALREADY, THE
GOVERNMENT HAS SOLD OFF TWO-THIRDS TO VOLVO AND MITSUBISHI..AND EXPECTS TO SELL ITS REMAINING SHARE SOON, SO IT CAN RECOUP THE ORIGINAL INVESTMENT.JAN EISENGA IS NOT JUST AN AUTO WORKER. HE AND HIS COLLEAGUE, JEAN
WOUTERS, ARE PART OF ANOTHER SPECIAL DUTCH CONSENSUS INSTITUTION TO ENCOURAGE COLLABORATION BETWEEN WORKERS AND MANAGEMENT. THEY WALK THE FACTORY FLOOR LISTENING TO THE CONCERNS OF FELLOW WORKERS. EISENGA AND WOUTERS
ARE MEMBERS OF THE FACTORY WORKS COUNCIL...COMMON TO EVERY DUTCH BUSINESS WITH MORE THAN 35 EMPLOYEES. WORKS COUNCIL MEMBERS, REPRESENTING ALL EMPLOYEES, MEET REGULARLY WITH MANAGEMENT....AT NEDCAR, WITH PERSONNEL
DIRECTOR OLAV MUURMANS AND MANAGER LUUD ZEEGERS. THE ISSUE TODAY IS A MANAGEMENT PROPOSAL TO ADD A WORKING SATURDAY AFTER THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY. SMITH: So what you're interested in doing, then, from management’s
standpoint, is making up the production? Muurmans: Yes, safeguarding production. SMITH: And from the standpoint of the Works Council, do
you care about making up the production or not? Eisinga: Yes. That's true. We also care about production. But ... SMITH: Why?
Eisenga: Why? Because it is our bread. We must live for making cars.Wouters: It's maybe sometimes a different way than with our management. Because we are far more concerned, at least
we think we are far more concerned, about the welfare of the people. ... Management wants the car, the cars, but don't think too often on the people. And that's sometimes a collision. SMITH: How do you work it out, Mr. Muurmans? Muurmans: We do our utmost to find solutions for this kind of problems. And there's this particular case where we can look
and look and look, and we are talking some days about it, and think about it, and we work on it together. SMITH: This sounds to me, Mr. Muurmans, like a sort of an inefficient
way to work. You say you've been meeting for several days. Wouldn't it be easier for management just to say: Hey, here's our plan? Muurmans: That's the easiest way, but ... you
have to involve all your people, always, I think. Wouters: I think it's one of the main reasons that they are relatively less strikes and things like that, because we are involved from the beginning, from the start.
sometimes you win, but win is symbolically. It's all the same. We're all NedCar. SMITH: What do you do when you reach a real deadlock, and you can't really resolve things?
Wouters: Well, we don't talk to each other anymore. Just like children. SMITH: And then how do you get together again? Wouters: Someone will call up to negotiate again, to come on speaking terms again. NARRATOR: SOMETIMES WORKERS AND MANAGERS SOCIALIZE... WITH AN "END OF THE
WEEK" BEER AT A LOCAL PUB. WHAT’S STRIKING TO AN AMERICAN IS THE MUTUAL COMMITMENT NOT ONLY TO THE SUCCESS OF NEDCAR BUT TO THE WELFARE OF THE LOCAL COMMUNITY. NEDCAR CEO CHRIS DEWULF.SMITH: As a CEO is your
primary function share holder value, share holder return or something different? Dewulf: It is of course important that my partners are quite pleased with what is happening here
and with the output of this plant, the efficiency and the activity of the plant. But they also have a kind of responsibility to the rest of the people working here. We are representing more than the, the five six
thousand which you have … it’s a whole environment. So, yes, we have a kind of responsibility to the people working here, that yes, they are tired at the end of the day but still pleased and still happy with the fact
that we have been working here. SMITH: So you feel a social responsibility to the larger community.
Dewulf: Yes also a social responsibility, absolutely. SMITH: Many Americans say that Europe can't afford its welfare state. My question is, can Holland be competitive,
economically competitive, and still afford those services for flex workers as well as full-time workers? Klass: It's the other way around. We believe that our welfare state is
one of our major economic assets and that it contributes to our productivity more than anything else. Because people know they can concentrate on the work without worrying too much. ... People can lose a job
without worrying about the future. They know they will be taken care of and they will be helped to new employment. They don't have to worry about health insurance. They don't have to worry about old age. So that
gives an environment in which people can concentrate on what the important things are -- work, family life, societal life. And as a whole, that makes for a relatively happy society, I must say. STANDUP: IT MAY WELL TAKE A REVOLUTION IN AMERICAN ATTITUDES AND NEW LEGISLATION TO GRANT THE GROWING MASS OF PART-TIME AND TEMP WORKERS IN AMERICA THE KIND OF PROTECTION THEY ALREADY ENJOY IN HOLLAND.
WE’VE HEARD WARNINGS IN THIS SERIES THAT UNLESS AMERICA TAKES SOME STRONG STEPS TO NARROW THE WIDENING GAP BETWEEN THE RICH AND THE HARD-PRESSED MIDDLE CLASS, TROUBLE LIES AHEAD. SIGNIFICANTLY, THESE WARNINGS COME NOT
FROM POLITICAL RADICALS BUT FROM SUCCESSFUL CORPORATE LEADERS. LUCENT TECHNOLOGIES CHAIRMAN HENRY SCHACHT SOUNDS THE ALARM THAT THE GROWING CONCENTRATION OF WEALTH IN AMERICA WILL BLOW UP IN OUR FACES. NORTHWEST
AIRLINES PRESIDENT JOHN DASBURG SAYS AMERICAN CAPITALISM NEEDS A BILL OF RIGHTS. THE ENCOURAGING MESSAGE FROM PLACES LIKE NEWPORT NEWS, HARMAN INTERNATIONAL, NORTHWEST AIRLINES AND HATHAWAY SHIRTS IS THAT PEOPLE CAN
TAKE THEIR ECONOMIC ESTINY INTO THEIR OWN HANDS...AND CREATE BOTH SOLID PROFITS AND GREATER JOB SECURITY THROUGH BOLD NEW ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIPS THE DREAM OF THESE ENTERPRISES IS NOT SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST...BUT THE
FITNESS OF SOCIETY TO DELIVER A FAIRER SHARE OF THE GAINS AND A BETTER LIFE TO A LARGER MAJORITY OF AMERICANS. I'M HEDRICK SMITH. THANK YOU FOR BEING WITH US. [Back to top] |
