Workers' representation at company level in CEE countries

2003 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miroslav Stanojevic ◽  
Grigor Gradev
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Research ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Collective Identities ◽  
Works Councils ◽  
Collective Interest ◽  
Social Dialogue ◽  
Interest Representation ◽  
Workplace Relations ◽  
The Social

Current workplace relations in central and eastern European candidate countries are strongly influenced by the legacy of fragmented workers’ interests and at best undeveloped semi-autonomous forms of collective interest representation. In addition, most trade unions have been unable to develop adequate strategies to cope with the pressures of radical marketisation and to forge collective identities. In this environment the mechanical implementation of social dialogue institutions could trigger opposition from the trade unions, conflicts between unions and works councils in companies where autonomous trade unions exist, and even serious damage to the unions. The social dialogue institutions will only have the desired effects in CEE companies if they are developed on the basis of trade unions that have been strengthened, or even, in the case of non-unionised companies, created. This article draws on empirical research into the operation of trade unions and works councils in the CEE countries, in particular Hungary and Slovenia.

Economic union without social union: The strange case of the European social dialogue

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 460-472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Prosser
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Economic Governance ◽  
Current Form ◽  
Social Dialogue ◽  
Social Sphere ◽  
The Social ◽  
European Social Policy ◽  
The Status ◽  
European Trade ◽  
Economic Union

The recent centralization of European economic governance raises the question of parallel developments in European social policy. On the basis of an examination of the case of the European social dialogue, the propensity of ‘spill-over’ theories to explain developments in the social sphere is considered. The following three potential future trajectories for the dialogue are reviewed: the possibility of the dialogue (1) becoming broader and more redistributive, (2) becoming a means of European Union (EU)-level wage control or (3) remaining in its current form. It is concluded that the status quo is likely to endure and that such a development threatens the integrity of spill-over theories and raises the issue of the dialogue’s utility to European trade unions.

scholarly journals Union struggle and the crisis of industrial relations in Italy

2003 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valeria Pulignano
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Policy Decision ◽  
Union Power ◽  
Social Dialogue ◽  
The Social ◽  
Policy Decision Making ◽  
The Government

This paper argues that the Berlusconi government is seeking to replace the ‘social concertation’ arrangement between government and trade unions with ‘social dialogue’ in an effort to undermine trade union ‘power’. This endeavour by the government to impose a policy of ‘social dialogue’ would severely limit trade unions' influence in economic and social policy decision-making and leave Berlusconi free to introduce reforms favouring his friends in employer organisations. One likely outcome would be the deregulation of the Italian labour market strongly damaging workers' rights.

Ontstaansgeschiedenis van de ondernemingsraden in België (1944-1949)

Res Publica ◽  
1985 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-124
Author(s):  
Wouter Dambre
Keyword(s):  
Social Security ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Economic Reforms ◽  
Economic Life ◽  
Social Solidarity ◽  
Works Councils ◽  
The Social ◽  
Post War ◽  
Ideological Resistance ◽  
Advisory Role

The basis of Belgium's post-war social and economic reforms was the social-solidarity agreement (1944) between the trade-unions and the employers. This «historical  compromise» aimed at securing social security and a legal ground for the workers' co-management in the economic life, in exchange for social peace and aid in attaining a productivity-raise.From 1945 till 1948 National Labour Conferences and Parliament discussed the matter, especially the introduction of Works Councils, which raised ideological resistance. The Socialists, favourable towards the Works Councils in undertakings, claimed economic and financial powers for them. The Catholic were in favour of co-management, cooperation between workers and employers and workers' co-responsibility. Theemployers, fearing a restriction of their powers and a threat of collectivizing, were very suspicious.An inter-catholic agreement between workers and employers allowed them to formulate a unanimous attitude towards the Works Councils.  A Socialist-Catholic compromise in Parliament resulted in the law on the organizing of the industry (20.IX.1948). This law reserved for the Works Councils a mainly advisory role in social matters. Their powers were very limited. Their composition was determined by cooperation and commoninterests.The first Works Councils-elections happened in 1950.

Transformation, EU Membership and Labour Relations in Central Eastern Europe: Poland — Czech Republic — Hungary — Slovenia

2000 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 399-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heribert Kohl ◽  
Wolfgang Lecher ◽  
Hans-Wolfgang Platzer
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Works Councils ◽  
East European ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Central Eastern Europe ◽  
Interest Representation ◽  
Social Partners ◽  
Enterprise Level

The article starts by emphasising the differences between the Central and East European countries in terms of their labour relations traditions, providing a brief characterisation for four CEECs, with Slovenia identified as the country in which the participatory tradition is strongest. Subsequent sections identify similarities and differences in terms of collective labour law and labour relations at enterprise and supra-enterprise level. At enterprise level the article provides examples of co-operative relations between trade unions and works councils (Slovenia), a dual system of interest representation imposed by government without trade union support (Hungary), political duplication of representation structures (Poland), and the tendency to retain former representation structures (Czech Republic). Similar differences emerge with respect to tripartism, which remains underdeveloped in all countries, again with the exception of Slovenia. The relative weakness of the social partners, and in particular their fragmentation, are shown to be a problem for the candidate countries on their path towards EU accession. Here the European social partners, in particular the ETUC and UNICE, and also European works councils in firms with subsidiaries in eastern Europe should do more to promote social dialogue in the CEECs.

Towards a Europeanization of indirect employee participation: Polish experiences

2015 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Skorupińska
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Process Analysis ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Employee Participation ◽  
Works Councils ◽  
Participatory Institutions ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Partners ◽  
New Institutions

This article reports the difficult path of developing works councils as new institutions of employee participation in Polish industrial relations and the atmosphere among the social partners surrounding this process. Analysis shows that the Europeanization of legislation on indirect employee participation does not always translate into effective functioning of participatory institutions in practice. Despite the fact that the initially reluctant attitude of trade unions and employers towards works councils has become more positive in Poland, the role of these institutions in Polish industrial relations remains negligible. The amendment to the Act on Informing and Consulting Employees of 2009 has led to a reduction in the already small presence of works councils in Polish enterprises to a marginal level of about 2%.

Social dialogue in Hungary and its influence on EU accession

2000 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 416-433 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorottya Boda ◽  
László Neumann
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Candidate Country ◽  
Eu Accession ◽  
East European ◽  
Social Dialogue ◽  
Social Council ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Partners ◽  
The One ◽  
High Level

The paper reviews the positions of the Hungarian social partners on the labour issues relating to EU accession. In addition to the topics dealt with in the 'Social Policy and Employment' chapter in the accession negotiations, the paper also discusses unions' and employers'views on labour migration, as well as how the adaptation of EU regulations in various sectors is likely to affect employment prospects. The paper argues that, on the one hand, social dialogue on EU accession can become more meaningful if employers and unions develop a co-ordinated strategy. On the other hand, appropriate back-up by experts is also required, because social partners ought to influence the complex system of negotiations being conducted, by experts of both the EU Commission and the Hungarian government, behind the scenes of high-level political negotiations. The authors also analyse the operation of social dialogue fora dedicated to EU accession issues. Hungary was the first East European candidate country to establish a joint committee with the Economic and Social Council (ESC), and within the country labour-related issues of accession have been delegated to the newly founded European Integration Council. In these fora the behaviour of trade unions is largely a consequence of the frustration over the fact that the current right-wing coalition government does not wish to go any further than formally observe the unions' consulting rights on major issues. At the same time organisational weakness and internal divisions still exist on the trade union side.

The territorial social dialogue: challenges and prospects for the trade unions

2005 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 589-604 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annette Jobert
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Social Dialogue ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Partners ◽  
State Changes

Forms of territorial social dialogue are developing at the regional or local level in most European countries. This article looks at the challenges facing the trade unions, particularly in France, as a result of this development. The first part examines the reasons for it - decentralisation of the state, changes in local government as well as in production systems - and the reasons why the trade unions are becoming increasingly involved. A second section focuses on a number of different instances of territorial social dialogue that reveal the diversity both of aims and of subjects treated, the wide-ranging public and private players involved and the highly diverse outcomes. The third part asks how these forms of social dialogue affect the unions. Do they represent a means whereby trade unions can extend their influence and strengthen their traditional areas of activity or do they contribute to weakening collective bargaining insofar as they offer less formalised methods of negotiating social outcomes that may detract from the role of the social partners to the benefit of government actors? The view put forward in this article is that the trade unions may well, under certain conditions, stand to gain from involvement in the territorial social dialogue.

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