{"id":4795,"date":"2023-09-29T11:22:47","date_gmt":"2023-09-29T10:22:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unionsyndicale.eu\/?p=4795"},"modified":"2023-09-29T11:22:47","modified_gmt":"2023-09-29T10:22:47","slug":"epc-50-years-celebrations-a-balanced-view","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unionsyndicale.eu\/en\/epc-50-years-celebrations-a-balanced-view\/","title":{"rendered":"EPC 50 years Celebrations: a Balanced View"},"content":{"rendered":"
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On the 5th of October, celebrations for the 50 years of the European Patent Convention (EPC) will take place at the EPO in the presence of high dignitaries of the host countries. On that occasion top EPO managers will surely extol the qualities of the Organisation, highlighting the crucial role of the Office for European innovation and industry, the EPO\u2019s rapid progress in the digital era and the flexibilization of working patterns.<\/p>\n

We will certainly join the celebratory mood, for there is much to be proud about the EPO\u2019s achievements, but it would not be amiss to also acknowledge explicitly the contribution of Staff \u2014 and the costs it has had to shoulder in the process.<\/p>\n

Mr Campinos has been at the helm of the European Patent Office since 2018; one of his main mandates was to restore social dialogue after the difficult presidency of Mr. Battistelli. EPO staff widely experienced Mr Battistelli\u2019s presidency as oppressive and laden with fear. This has thankfully receded under Mr Campinos\u2019 leadership, but unfortunately a culture of burnout, exhaustion and disengagement has taken over.\u00a0 The main culprits appear to be excessive work pressure, reduction of job satisfaction, and lack of trust in the EPO\u2019s management.<\/p>\n

Colleagues are subject to intense work pressure in a system that incentivises raw quantitative output. There are troubling indications that staff\u2019s health is negatively affected (see links \u201chealth, disengagement\u201d below). Meanwhile, the quality of delivered patents is coming under public scrutiny (see \u201clinks quality\u201d below). Feedback from outside can be valuable, and necessary (if patent quality were objectively found to be decreasing, it would create real problems for European industry, and the EPO would certainly be advised to take action in this respect); but in the context, critical views from the outside seem to corroborate the pervasive feeling among staff that quantity trumps quality, which adds frustration and detracts from job satisfaction.<\/p>\n

A further source of frustration is the fact that employment conditions are being curtailed \u2014 and this with only pro forma involvement of social partners \u2014 while positive changes for Staff can seemingly be extracted only through litigation at the International Labour Association Administrative Tribunal (ILOAT) rather than true social dialogue.\u00a0 As a side note on this: it is urgent that the outcomes of the EPO\u2019s internal justice system (Appeals Committee) are respected and all judgments of the ILOAT in favour of staff promptly executed (see here<\/a> and here<\/a>). This would help mitigate the impression held by a substantial section of staff that management does not deserve their trust, as was found again in the latest staff survey (see links \u201chealth, disengagement\u201d below).<\/p>\n

The 50 years of the European Patent Convention would be a good opportunity for the EPO to:<\/p>\n