News

By Lucia Peveri, UILCA

The fourth Unicredit TUA meeting took place in Bucharest on 11-12th May at the Headquarters of Unicredit Bank. UNI Europa Finance was represented by Claudia Saller, Policy Officer and Lucia Peveri, Expert of UNI in Unicredit EWC. The President of EWC, Angelo Di Cristo actively participated to the meeting.

The road map of priorities was agreed among the representatives of Trade Unions from Italy, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Poland, Luxembourg and Romania. It includes:

Strategic Plan 2014-2018 of Unicredit Group
Implementation of the Joint Declaration on Responsibles Sales, signed last year by the Management and the EWC
Digitalisation and the anticipation of change
Global Framework Agreement

The TUA appointed its Steering group, its Coordinator (Giuseppina Cucinotta, Italy) and Deputy coordinators (Ciprian Iliescu, Romania and a union representative from Germany – not yet indicated).

A Communication Group was set up in order to develop tools like forum, website, facebook page, etc: the aim is to enlarge the TUA visibility and the effectiveness (internal and external), to better promote the principles, actions and decisions and facilitate the exchange of information and best practices within the Alliance and with the EWC.

The next meeting will possibly be held in Poland in 2017.

Giuseppina Cucinotta, after her appointment said: “I personally believe that the next 15 months will represent a crucial period for Unions within Unicredit Group. Banking is dramatically changing all over the world: in Unicredit Group messages of great change are launched, in particular through digitalization. A significant financial investment in digitalization is part of the Strategic Plan 2014-2018.”

She emphasised: “Unions are not against change: we do not live in the past. However, the conditions of workers must not get worse in the name of change, so as standards of service offered to customers.

Unicredit workers have the right to work in a fair environment, the right to give good advice and, as a consequence, get gratification from their work.

Over 140,000 employees represent a wealth for Unicredit Group, a richness that few financial companies can boast of in Europe. They also represent diversity of cultures, thought, languages: but these diversities have to produce proposals and common actions to be pursued.”

She added: “Many of us are members of Unicredit EWC and this has a positive impact on the action of the Trade Union Alliance, having in mind that the two bodies have different roles and tasks. Only a joint cooperation will be successful.”

She then concluded “Our TUA must grant solidarity between all workers in Unicredit Group. No action, neither talk or written communication going against this solidarity principle will be stand by us. Being together will always make us and our workers stronger.”