Examination of Witnesses (Questions 131-139)
GERARD COYNE
8 JUNE 2009
Q131 Chairman: Welcome. This is
the third formal evidence session of the West Midlands Select
Committee. In our first one in Birmingham, we met with the major
clearing banks there. We had a second meeting in the Warwickshire
area in which we heard from various representatives of business.
As you have just heard, we spoke with a representative from the
ceramics industry. We felt that it was important to get the union
perspective on the economic downturn, the effectiveness of regional
mechanisms for dealing with that and ways forward for the future.
I think that you know all the Members of Parliament. This is David
Lloyd, who is a Clerk to the Committee. We very much welcome you
here, Gerard. Perhaps for the record, I will ask you to introduce
yourself.
Gerard Coyne: I am Gerard Coyne,
Regional Secretary of Unite the Union in the West Midlands.
Q132 Chairman: Thanks very much.
The first question is a general one. We will head down to some
of the specifics in a while. What is the regional economic picture
being reported to you at the moment about the situation in business?
Clearly, these are tough times, but some of the evidence we have
received has also indicated that it is mixed; it is mixed sectorally
and sub-regionally as well. What are your impressions?
Gerard Coyne: It would reflect
that to a degree. As you are probably aware, Unite's membership
is predominantly in the manufacturing sector, so our experience,
certainly over the past 12 months or so, has been one of rapid,
clear economic downturn among the companies that we have membership
in. Certain sectors have seemed to ride this period of the recession
slightly better, but others have done far worse. Clearly, construction
started off in a bad way with the recession. It seems to have
bottomed out at the moment, although there is no sign of immediate
growth. That sector was rapidly followed by the automotive and
retail sectors, and although it has not yet happened to the extent
that you would expect, there is an anticipation that aerospace
will enter a similar economic downturn in the not-too-distant
future. There are levels of redundancies in other sectors.
Q133 Chairman: We have just heard
from the ceramics industry and we got a mixed picture. There were
some areas that were doing fairly well up until the last 12 months;
they were investing and were quite buoyant in the way that they
were responding. However, we heard other suggestions that as far
as the ceramics industry was concerned, there were long-term issues
of global competition and other things that were affecting that
industry. I know that Unite does not have its main membership
base in those areas, but do you have any comments on those issues?
Gerard Coyne: The general feeling
among a number of the companies with which we have membership
was that, until September last year, good returns were anticipated.
Some companies suggested that they would have record profits,
but there was such a rapid and catastrophic downturn after September
that it effectively wiped out those reserves. Companies that we
would expect to weather the economic circumstances slightly better,
seem to be struggling very hard. These are unprecedented times—that
is a phrase that is used on many occasions, but it genuinely feels
like that at the moment.
Q134 Joan Walley: We talked earlier
about how the West Midlands regional taskforce and Advantage West
Midlands are there to support companies and your members. What
has your experience been of that?
Gerard Coyne: I should declare
an interest, as I am a member of the taskforce and a board member
of Advantage West Midlands. My general view is that the level
of co-ordinated and partnership working in the West Midlands has
been fairly extensive. Something that has been there for a number
of years—for the wrong reasons, unfortunately—is the
experience of the MG Rover situation in 2000 and 2005, which forged
strong working relationships between partner organisations and
trade unions. In many respects, the taskforce that is there now
replicates and replaces good working relationships at a local
level.
Q135 Joan Walley: Can I interrupt
you there? Here in North Staffordshire, it sometimes feels as
though all the work done to co-ordinate things benefits those
who were able to take advantage of what happened at Rover, but
it has not filtered down to areas on the periphery of the region
such as North Staffordshire. How do you answer that?
Gerard Coyne: There is a real
issue in relation to how effective voices from other areas of
the region feed in. North Staffordshire may be one of those areas.
I am also mindful of the fact that parts of the region—particularly
in the rural communities—are suffering under the recession
and the voice and mechanism for feeding in from those communities
is sometimes not as strong as we would like. One thing that has
been raised at the taskforce is the need to realise that there
are satellite towns, such as Uttoxeter, where if the companies
go under, the whole town's economic existence will be called into
question. That is not the case in North Staffordshire, but there
are issues there about the level of feeding in from those areas.
Q136 Joan Walley: What I am getting
at is what kind of representation do Stoke-on-Trent and North
Staffordshire have on that taskforce?
Gerard Coyne: There is representation
from the potteries. If you are asking in terms of the trade union
representation there, then I have a responsibility for the whole
of the West Midlands. Stoke is a significant part of our membership
with many well known companies in which we organise. Through that
process and through the Midlands TUC the area is formally represented,
but there is representation from the North Staffordshire local
authorities on the taskforce. I want to come back to the difference
that you refer to between the MG Rover experience and the focus
around the taskforce—I do think that there is a difference.
Partnership working is well established, but there is a sense
that the level of focus that was around—dealing with one
employer, one closure and the impact of that—compared with
a complete, region-wide economic recession makes it much more
difficult to get an effective system of ensuring a consistent
response in the way that you could do through a single entity,
single employer, taskforce arrangement. That sense comes through
in the current, regional taskforce.
Q137 Joan Walley: What specific
initiatives have come about as a result of the taskforce to help
your members?
Gerard Coyne: There are a number
of areas that we pushed on. This would perhaps be one of my comments
about the taskforce and the process at the moment. There are key
areas that we think would be of assistance and I am of the view
that they probably receive wholesale support on the taskforce.
It is the point where it then raises above the taskforce and interacts
with the Government as to whether these things are responded to.
Q138 Joan Walley: I am just trying
to understand specifically.
Gerard Coyne: One illustration
I would pick up on is the 16-hour rule. That is something on which
we have campaigned long and hard since the experience in 2005
about easements in the 16-hour rule, which has now been granted
in the West Midlands. It has not been as much as we would have
liked.
Q139 Joan Walley: But did that
not come about before December?
Gerard Coyne: Not as far as I
am aware. Discussions and pressures have been put forward. There
was a limited easement, but I understood that it had been extended
to 13 weeks. That came about after December as I understood it,
but correct me if I am wrong on that. One area, for example, where
we have not been successful—there is unanimity around the
table on this, as was referred to earlier—is the short-time
working payment, which is of huge significance for us.
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