The Europeanization of Industrial Relations in the Service Sector
Problems and Perspectives in a Heterogeneous Field
Series:
Stefan Rüb and Hans-Wolfgang Platzer
The choice of case studies aims to capture a broad range of service sector employment, in terms of both working conditions and employment relations arrangements. As well as covering a number of key sectors, the choice of home countries of the selected firms also aims to capture the impact of national influences for the main industrial relations models in Europe. Overall, the study offers insights into the complexities of the Europeanization of company-level industrial relations in a dynamic field now also confronted by the convulsions unleashed by the Eurozone crisis.
Chapter 9: A great leap forward in European industrial relations: Post- acquisition developments in the case of DS Smith
Extract
| 169 →
CHAPTER 9
A great leap forward in European industrial relations: Post- acquisition developments in the case of DS Smith
9.1 DS Smith: From a British to a European undertaking
DS Smith plc is a leading global supplier of recycled packaging materials for both industrial products and consumer goods. The group has four divisions: packaging, paper, plastics, and recycling.
The company has production facilities in twenty-five countries, with the bulk of its output concentrated in Europe. The workforce of just over 20,000 is dispersed over a large number of relatively small plants. The company’s Annual Report 2011 noted that there were 128 operations, each employing between six and 600 employees. DS Smith’s acquisition of SCA Packaging in 2012 raised the total number of production operations to over 200.
The largest division by some margin is packaging, which accounts for around three-quarters of the total workforce and has 190 manufacturing sites. The main product is corrugated packaging. The paper division operates paper mills in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK. The plastics division has over thirty manufacturing sites in Europe, North and South America, Asia, and Australia.
The fact that production is organized in a large number of small plants follows from the fragmented market for corrugated cardboard packaging. The four largest suppliers (in addition to DS Smith, Smurfit Kappa, SAICA and International Papers) account for some 40 per cent of the European market,...
You are not authenticated to view the full text of this chapter or article.
This site requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books or journals.
Do you have any questions? Contact us.
Or login to access all content.