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UNI Europa is calling for a complete overhaul of the selection process after the EBA’s first attempt at selecting members has created a group in which employees are not given an equal voice and bank consumers are represented by unknown organisations.



“The composition of the banking stakeholders group is clearly stacked against employees and consumers,” said Oliver Roethig, Head of UNI Finance and acting head of UNI Europa. “There is little chance of fairness and equity when employees and consumers’ representatives are marginalised in such a way. If the Commission is serious about giving workers and consumers a voice in this group, it must dismiss the current members and reopen the selection process.”

The banking authority stakeholders group has 30 seats that are meant to have balanced numbers of industry insiders, academics and representatives for consumers and employees. Only one seat has been given to an employee representative. Five seats are held by consumer groups but not one is held by a top European consumer organisation that has been advocating for reform.

Under the Regulation for the European Banking Authority, employees are entitled to representation at the same level as consumers, users and small and medium size enterprises (SMEs), which would mean at least 3 seats in the group.

UNI Europa has also learned that seats that are meant for consumer representatives are being held by organisations that are not considered consumer representatives by the European Consumers Organisation BEUC.

The make-up of the organisation gives the impression that the selection was not done in a manner that ensures proper representation of non-industry stakeholders in the EBA’s work. UNI Europa has observed that all but one of the seats set aside for industry representatives are held by Western Europeans while all but one of those set aside for consumer representatives have been given to Central and Eastern Europeans, even when though the organisations have little or no profile in Europe.

The current composition not only contravenes principles of stronger non-industry stakeholder involvement that European Union Internal Market Commissioner Michel Barnier and EU President Jose Manuel Barroso have advocated for but it is also a direct breach of the Regulation for the European Banking Authority.

UNI Europa has written to the EBA Chairman and Commissioner Barnier to ask for action to be taken.

UNI Europa believes that redoing the selection process in an open and transparent manner is the only way to ensure the group’s composition follows the letter and the spirit of the EBA Regulation.

You will find attached the letter UNI Europa has sent to Mr Enria Chairman of the EBA and Commissioner Barnier.

For more information contact:

Rachel Owens, UNI Europa Finance

Tel: +32 2 235 08 74

rachel.owens@uniglobalunion.org