Covid-19 has massively changed the world of work and digital working is increasingly becoming a stronger focal point. Many companies and their employees are facing new challenges due to new qualifications and technical requirements. Previous studies on digitalisation have shown that employees, works councils and managers often lack the necessary knowledge to implement digital strategies and that employees are hardly involved.
This is why our project is so relevant with the following goal: We want to increase the knowledge of the target groups on the topic of digitalisation, develop and test participatory approaches for the implementation of digital strategies in order to support digitalisation strategies in companies in Austria and Hungary. In order to achieve this goal, a well-founded analysis of the labour market 4.0 is necessary in advance - also due to the strongly changing conditions in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic - in order to support labour market stakeholders and companies in planning future measures and strategies. Based on this, participatory consultations on the implementation of digital strategies will be carried out in companies. Measures and strategies for labour market stakeholders and companies will be derived from this to sustainably increase the degree of digitalisation in the future. Another, yet greater project goal is to strengthen cross-border cooperation between trade unions and players in the labour market by building a network on working with digitalisation.
Sharing innovative best practice examples across national borders - this is one of the goals of the two project partners, the Hungarian Trade Union Confederation MASZSZ and the Austrian Trade Union Federation ÖGB. Not only will the exchange of experience and knowledge regarding the development and implementation of digital strategies be strengthened, but the establishment of a network consisting of works councils, trade unionists and other experts from the labour market sector is also planned. The project activities will be carried out bilaterally and in different event forms, such as workshops, seminars, or conferences - also across sectors - as well as working groups on digitalisation, will be initiated. After all, the transfer of knowledge at eye level is the basis of sustainable cooperation. But firstly, the concrete needs regarding problem areas in the field of digitalisation are to be determined with the help of a questionnaire addressed to works councils, employees and employers. The questions cover a wide range of topics such as the involvement of employees and works councils in the development and decision-making of digital corporate strategies, satisfaction and practical experience with home office, sustainability aspects in the procurement of technical equipment and much more. Based on the answers to these questions, thematic focal points will be set for the events.
Barbara Willsberger: willsberger@lrsocialresearch.at
Nicolas Pretterhofer: pretterhofer@lrsocialresearch.at
Németh Zsolt: zsolt6620@gmail.com
Renate Divitschek: renate.divitschek@bab.at
György Károly: kgyorgy@szakszervezet.net
