Documents Klebaner, Samuel 3 results

"Quels sont les effets des normes environnementales européennes, qu'il s'agisse des limites d'émissions de polluants ou de CO2, sur les stratégies des constructeurs automobiles ? Cette règlementation est-elle parvenue à atteindre les objectifs qu'elle s'était fixés ?
Pour répondre à ces questions, cet ouvrage ouvre deux boîtes noires : la production règlementaire en tant que processus politique et juridique, d'une part, et les mécanismes conduisant les firmes à agir sur et à réagir à cette production, d'autre part. Cette règlementation a d'abord été le fruit d'un processus historique dont l'auteur analyse les différentes phases depuis les années 1970, en revenant sur l'impact du dieselgate. Face à cette règlementation, les constructeurs ont dû anticiper et arbitrer de multiples contraintes technologiques, industrielles, économiques et juridiques.
En dépit d'un jeu construit sur une intense coopération entre constructeurs, États membres et Commission européenne, on découvrira que l'agrégation de comportements en apparence rationnels a conduit à un résultat très insatisfaisant pour les parties prenantes et pour l'intérêt général. Quel avenir désormais pour une politique européenne de la mobilité ?"

"In this study, the obstacles and potential associated with a transformation of the automotive industry and the development of an ecological mobility industry are discussed in dozens of interviews with trade unionists, climate activists and representatives of the automotive industry from Brazil, Serbia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Spain, France and Italy. There is a particular focus on positioning in the international value chain, the impact of foreign direct investment, the structure of the local labour market and the bargaining power of local trade unions.

The study also examines how local actors assess the potential for building an ecological mobility industry.
Since the outbreak of the COVID‑19 pandemic, the global automotive industry has had to contend with a decline in employment, with 150,000 jobs lost in the European Union (EU) by February 2021. Nissan, Renault, Daimler, Continental, Bosch, ZF and many other manufacturers have had to lay off staff and cut jobs, and it is not only the carmakers themselves that have been affected: the vital supplier industry has been hit too. In Brazil, 50 percent of automotive production capacity has been idle during the pandemic, and Ford has ceased production in the country entirely.

On the other hand, share owners benefited from dividends and asset growth. Global car production has been characterised by overcapacity and recurring sales crises for years, and only the increasing demand for vehicles on the Chinese market and various measures to create purchase incentives have been able to shore up demand in recent years. The billions in support from some governments during the COVID-19 pandemic were, of course, a welcome boon for the automotive industry.

When it comes to a left Green New Deal, therefore, the focus must be more on developing alternatives: e-mobility needs to be discussed in a broader context, including above all the production of electrically-powered rail vehicles and public transport vehicles. Local and long-distance public transport must be comprehensive and affordable, guaranteeing the "right to mobility" all over the world. The mobility transition is a key conflict and a central "starter project" of a global left Green New Deal.

The development of alternative production could create hundreds of thousands of jobs worldwide. Not only that but the massive expansion of rail and public transport has the potential to generate local jobs that would not be threatened by industrial relocation. The stark contrast between labour and capital was highlighted once again during the pandemic, as many companies in the automotive industry took advantage of the situation to put pressure on workers, downgrade working and employment conditions, cut wages, lay off staff and move production to cheaper locations.

A conversion of the automotive industry into an ecologically-oriented mobility industry can only succeed if it is underpinned by extensive social participation: public involvement would have to be combined with a greater say for workers, trade unions, environmental associations and the wider population, for example in the form of regional councils. It is also important to build on workers' knowledge and expertise, and the pride they have in themselves as producers and in their product and its usefulness.

A "just transition" is needed for the automotive industry in order to be able to cope with the upcoming challenges of structural change through e-mobility and the development of an ecological mobility industry. We need a green revolution in the industry while also protecting workers."

"The aim of this article is to analyze the power of trade unions to influence a French industrial policy. The study examines the case of the medical imaging industry, in which a trade union managed to convince both the firms and the government to invest in a new innovation center. Through a qualitative study, the author highlights step by step the power resources this trade union used to deploy multi-level ‘political work'. Through this lobbying process involving various actors, resources and institutions, the study examines participation of stakeholders in industrial policy formulation and implementation, questioning the possibilities for a trade union to be decisive in economic development. It is found that the lack of trade union structural power and institutional power (including investment capabilities) makes it difficult to successfully put an industrial project on the agenda and even more difficult to participate in the investment phase."