A planned strike at the European Patent Office (EPO) has been rejected by its president, causing further unrest among EPO workers, WIPR can reveal.
Staff at the Munich-based office had planned a three-day walkout later this month, which would have been the third round of strikes in as many months.
In a letter sent to staff and seen by WIPR, EPO president Benoît Battistelli said it could not go ahead because it might “create confusion” at a time when new staff representatives are being elected.
However, speaking to WIPR, a staff member claimed the rejection of the strike had “no legal basis” and that citing the forthcoming elections was an excuse to brush away issues.
“The legal framework adopted by the Administrative Council in its March session for social democracy at the EPO has entered into force and the campaign to elect staff representatives at the central and local level … has started. Elections will take place June 18,” the letter said.
“The organisation of a strike ballot during this period would create confusion between both voting processes and could prejudice the equal means and opportunities of the candidates to perform their campaign,” it added.
The staff member said: “The obvious aim is to convince the Administrative Council that all is well at the EPO, despite overwhelming evidence of the contrary, so that his [Battistelli’s] term of office will be prolonged for another two or three years”.
The Administrative Council is one of the two organs of the European Patent Organisation, the other being the EPO. It acts as the EPO's supervisory body and is composed of representatives from member states.
Battistelli also said that the Central Staff Committee, which had agreed to be the administrative interlocutor regarding strike action, had not engaged with management in a “responsible social dialogue”.
The EPO was hit recently by seven days of strikes after staff, unhappy about various internal problems at the office, walked out on March 21, 24 and 25, and April 14, 15, 16 and 17.
Their main concerns were leadership and the president, changes to the office’s disciplinary committee, and a lack of recognition of unions.
A spokesman for the EPO confirmed that a strike could not be permitted during June due to the election process.
“The organisation of a strike ballot during this period … could prejudice the equal means and opportunities for the candidates to perform their campaign,” the spokesman said.
(Source: WIPR)
