Pensions at work

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Pensions at work

• Worker control, capital and pensions An
  opportunity for dialogue with labour

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
2
Presentation overview

• The project Pensions at Work
• The politics of pensions
• Technical knowledge and alienated labour
• Pensions and social value
• A new role for labour in the economy
• The alliance
• Labour education on pensions a contested
  terrain

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
3
The project pensions at work

• A SSHRC/INE alliance project on social investment
  strategies for pension capital
• Union and university alliance
• Three year program of research and education
• Learning through dialogue and networking by
  on-line communication, meeting, conferencing and
  labour curriculum
• Formative, ongoing participatory evaluation

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
4
The politics of pensions

• 640 billion of pension capital in Canada
• Control of capital has moved from community to
  individual employers to the financial industry
• Fiduciary responsibility a tool to maintain
  control
• Labour movement has historically been ambivalent
  about management of pensions
• Capital works against the interests of workers

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
5
Technical knowledge and alienated labour

• Professionalization of pensions
• Ideological dominance of financial industry
• Material domination of employer
• Technical expertize of union staff
• Labour education has been restricted to
  understanding pension benefits

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
6
Pension education contested terrain

• Existing training is largely provided by the
  financial industry
• Very little union-friendly pension education
• Trustees alienated from their unions by fears of
  fiduciary obligations
• Union trustees viewed as unprofessional
• Unions seen as having biased and subjective views
  on investment

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
7
The alliance an opportunity for dialogue

• Eight universities, the labour movement and
  labour-friendly organizations
• Union reference group and advisory group of
  professionals
• strong partner relationships
• Collaborative learning
• Hamilton steelworkers forum strengthening local
  university-union alliances

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
8
Pensions and social value

• Developing a union agenda
• Social investment, fiduciary responsibility and
  the rate of return
• Positive and negative screens and best-of-sector
• Shareholder action and proxy voting
• Economically targeted investment

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
9
A new role for labour in the economy

• Corporate campaigning
• International activism
• Economic investment
• Strengthening our existing networks
• Building new alliances to use labours capital
• Economic and workplace democracy

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
10
Adult learning focussed dialogue

• OBSERVATION
• Getting the facts
• Information
• REFLECTION
• Personal Reactions
• Associations

• INTERPRETATION
• Applying meaning
• Understanding the implications
• DECISION-MAKING
• Bringing closure
• Taking Action
• Future Directions

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
11
Labour pensions curriculum

• Will be on-line and include
• Introductory modules for union members
• Trustee modules on latest research

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
12
Module Case Studies Series

• Will be online and include
• fact-based legal decisions raising issues of
  fiduciary responsibility and socially responsible
  investing
• best practices models of investment

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
13
Labour education materials

• Will be on-line and include
• popular pension pieces
• fact sheets
• Cutting edge academic research articles on
  pension fund investment

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004
14
references

• Jack Quarter (1995). Crossing the line.Unionized
  employee ownership and investment funds. Toronto
  James Lorimer and Co.
• Griff Foley (1999). Learning in social action. A
  contribution to understanding informal education.
  London Zed books
• Vandana Shiva (2002). Water wars Privatization,
  pollution and profit. London South End Press.
• Marilyn Waring (1990). If women counted. A new
  feminist economics. San Francisco Harper
• Paulo Freire (1973). Education for critical
  consciousness. New York Continuum Publishing
  Company.
• The Canadian Institute of Cultural Affairs

Pensions at Work Conference - Isla Carmichael PhD
Lisa Duggan - October 2004