The employers' organisations in Britain: The case of the CBI

Résumé du document

I decided to speak about employers' organisations in Britain because of a personal and very simple interrogation: I was actually wondering what the equivalent of the French MEDEF in Britain was. At first sight, I discovered quickly that this equivalent is the CBI, The Confederation of British Industry. However, looking at it more closely, this answer is not really satisfying. I think it is important to go further. Indeed, if the CBI is also the main employers' organisation in Britain, and even if the greatest part of its issues is shared with the MEDEF, the way it works is completely different. And this difference is mostly due to the huge difference between French and British economic system. I will try to summarize that point quite rapidly. That's why my first part is largely historical and deals with the roots of Anglo-Saxon economic system. In the second part, I will talk about the main issues the CBI defends and about its relations with the British government, especially with Blair's government.

Extraits

[...] The employers' organisations in Britain: The case of the CBI I decided to speak about employers' organisations in Britain because of a personal and very simple interrogation: I was actually wondering what the equivalent of the French MEDEF in Britain was. At first sight, I discovered quickly that this equivalent is the CBI, The Confederation of British Industry. However, looking at it more closely, this answer is not really satisfying. I think it is important to go further. Indeed, if the CBI is also the main employers' organisation in Britain, and even if the greatest part of its issues is shared with the MEDEF, the way it works is completely different. [...]

[...] Even if the methods differ, the aim is the same. Another difference might appear in the relations with governments, and especially with Blair's one. Its relations with Blair's government The Labour Party historically comes from the beginning of trade- unions. We should normally suppose that CBI and Labour's relations are full of conflicts. Reality is a bit more complex. Tony Blair and his “Blair's” changed this opposition. As we have seen, CBI sometimes is on the same way than Blair's government (about Europe especially). [...]

[...] The CBI exercises its lobbying over 80 policy issues that affect business, such as: employment, energy, environment, tax, pensions, Europe, etc. The CBI divides the UK into 13 regions. It also has offices in Beijing, Brussels and Washington. Its main office is, of course, in London. The Chairmen's committee of the CBI gathers the chairmen of these regions. This institution is in charge of the responsibility for setting the CBI's position on all policy matters. It is also important the CBI Board, namely the CBI staff executive directors and also some non-executive directors. [...]

[...] Even though trade unionism is not nowadays in a very good shape (especially due to Margaret Thatcher's government which have led a very anti-unionism policy), we can easily understand that employers also need a strong representation to defend their interests. The CBI: history and functioning British employers began to organize at the beginning of the twentieth century. The Federation of British Industries is established in 1916 to provide employers with a national voice. This is the forerunner of the CBI. The modern CBI was born in 1965. It defines itself quote the official site of the organisation): a not-for-profit organisation” More precisely: it is a pressure group which aims at helping UK businesses to compete more effectively. [...]

[...] Those last months allow seeing in a very concrete way what are CBI's main battles. CBI's main battles They do not constitute a huge surprise. Indeed, as every employers' organisation, its main issues are economical, and of course, liberal. Some concrete and recent examples will illustrate, maybe better than a theory speech, this point: - First, about Europe: we don't have to search very long. Last week-end during the “forum of private business”: The CBI expressed concern that the European Commission was considering further employment legislation. [...]