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The City of London, Europe's leading finance centre, is also home to Nordea's British unit. The unit has around 60 employees, one of whom is Joanne Tanner. She is also a member of the Personnel Committee, Perco, which is the employees' forum for making their voices heard.
"It’s not a trade union, but a way for the personnel to present their views to the management," says Joanne.
Joanne Tanner has worked for the bank for 15 years. Prior to the Nordea merger she worked at the Norwegian Christiania Bank in London. She now works as a team leader for a group of five people.
Perco was formed three years ago as a channel for the views and wishes of the personnel.
"It was a way of getting people to stop complaining. They bring their views to us and we pass them on to the management. It can be about anything – perks, the work environment or changes of various kinds."
Perco, however, is not a trade union and does not charge a membership fee.
"As far as I know, there has never been a trade union here, but people seem to be satisfied with what we're doing. Without Perco there would be worse problems.
OK, we may not have the strength that the trade unions at Nordea have, but this is how things usually work here in the City of London," she says.
Perco meets four times a year. The meetings can last from an hour to two days depending on how long the list of items is.
Forbidden to discuss pay
Only personnel issues are discussed. There is no formal co-determination or right to negotiate. The personnel representatives present views and return with information to their colleagues.
"Sometimes the management says yes, sometimes no. They listen a lot. If someone has an uncomfortable chair they are allowed to change it. We have been given flat screens. Many people complain about the heat but it is difficult to do anything about the ventilation in the building. Compared to other Scandinavian banks we are doing very well when it comes to employee benefits."
Perco does not discuss pay. This is a matter between the management and the individual employee.
"This is confidential information. We have compared average salaries in various banks but this is not something I can discuss. I am forbidden to speak about this," says Joanne Tanner.
She has heard that employee influence may be strengthened if Nordea becomes a European Company, but at present she cannot herself judge whether this is correct. On the other hand, she believes that in the long term it would be good for the bank, and thus for the employees, to go ahead with the plans to form Nordea SE.
Bengt Rolfer
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