scholarly journals Collective redress and workers’ rights in Slovenia

2021 ◽  
pp. 203195252110566
Author(s):  
Barbara Kresal
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Legal Order ◽  
Collective Actions ◽  
Collective Redress ◽  
Opt Out ◽  
Collective Actors ◽  
New Type ◽  
Labour Disputes

In 2017, the Collective Actions Act introduced a new type of lawsuit – the collective action – into the Slovenian legal order. A collective action can be lodged in cases of instances of so-called ‘mass harm’, including mass violations of workers’ rights. This could improve the effectiveness of enforcement of workers’ rights in practice. Instead of a number of individual labour disputes concerning the same or similar violations of workers’ rights, a collective action can be lodged by trade unions or other representative collective actors in this field. Both opt-in and opt-out approaches are possible and the decision on this is left to the discretion of the court. Despite many positive aspects, only one collective action in the area of labour rights has been lodged to date. In this contribution I analyse legal regulation of the existing collective redress mechanism and possible reasons for deficiencies discerned in its functioning in practice.

scholarly journals Collective redress and workers’ rights in the Netherlands

2021 ◽  
pp. 203195252110566
Author(s):  
D.M.A. (Vivian) Bij de Vaate
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Collective Actions ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Collective Redress ◽  
Successful Case ◽  
Opt Out

This contribution discusses the Dutch possibilities of collective redress in the domain of labour law. More specifically, it examines the legal options of bringing collective actions and obtaining collective redress in Dutch courts in labour cases, and elaborates on the relevant legal framework as well as the extent to which these opportunities have been used in practice. Findings imply that the Netherlands was among one of the first European countries to introduce a general collective action system. This general collective action regime allows unions and other interest groups to raise cases to protect workers’ rights, even outside the scope of collective labour agreements. Such a collective action regime, however, is not commonly used in practice. Nevertheless, as of January 2020 the admissibility criteria for this general collective redress mechanism have been expanded and it has become an ‘opt-out’ regime, without the need for individual workers to initiate individual follow-up proceedings in the event of a successful case. The latter could improve the effective enforcement of workers’ rights in practice and could provide an incentive for trade unions and other organisations that are active in the protection of workers’ rights to incite a collective action.

Trade Union Liability for ‘EU-Unlawful’ Collective Action

2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonas Malmberg
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Eu Law ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Collective Actions ◽  
Court Of Justice ◽  
The Right ◽  
Alternative Understanding ◽  
The Eu

The Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) has made it clear that collective action taken by trade unions under certain circumstances might violate the freedom of services and the right of establishment under the Treaty (Articles 49 and 56 TFEU). However, the Court has not addressed the issue of which remedies are to be available against a trade union arranging such an ‘EU-unlawful’ collective action. This question was dealt with by the Swedish Labour Court (Arbetsdomstolen) in its final judgment in December 2009. The article discusses this judgment and presents an alternative understanding of the EU law requirements concerning remedies for EU-unlawful collective actions.

Collective actions on the margins of the salariat

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 279-295 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Christine Bureau ◽  
Antonella Corsani
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
The Other ◽  
Collective Actions ◽  
Workplace Democracy ◽  
Wage Labour ◽  
Collective Actors ◽  
The One ◽  
Independent Work ◽  
Working World ◽  
Shed Light

In light of the renewed expansion of independent work and the blurring of the boundaries between wage labour and independence, the emergence of new collective actors in the space between wage labour and independent work/contracting is of critical significance. In this article we propose to highlight two experiences of collective action, both in France. On the one hand, we examine the Intermittent and Precarious Workers Coordination and, on the other, the project launched by a Coopérative d’Activité et d’Emploi (CAE: employment and activity cooperative or BEC: Business and Employment Cooperative) with the aim of evolving towards a ‘work mutuality’. While quite different with regard to their origins and means of mobilisation, these experiences nevertheless share two common significant traits: they are both what we term ‘instituting factories’ ( fabriques instituantes); and they both experiment with non-hierarchical forms of decision-making, organisation and collaboration. We attempt to shed light on the background of these two experiences of collective action whose origins are rooted in professional situations on the margins of the salariat, as well as upon the innovative displacements they introduce into the working world by re-interrogating forms of workplace democracy.

scholarly journals The Protection of the Worker`s Right to Freedom of Association: the ECtHR Case-Law

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 166-185
Keyword(s):  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Case Law ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Freedom Of Association ◽  
Collective Redress ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Right ◽  
Economic Well Being

The article is devoted to the study of the freedom of association of workers as an important element of the mechanism of the protection of labour rights, and also as a tool for effective social dialogue aimed at improving working conditions and ensuring the socio-economic well-being of workers. It is established that although the right to form and join trade unions under the ECHR is part of the right to freedom of association, its content is quite broad, as it is determined by the purpose of such association, which is to protect the interests of workers. Therefore, a wide range of collective redress, including the right to collective bargaining and the right to strike, are now an integral part of the right of workers to form or join trade unions. The study pays special attention to the analysis of the case-law of the ECtHR, which allowed the author to identify key elements of the content of the right of employees to association and determine the positive and negative obligations of the state that are necessary to ensure its effectiveness and protection. Taking this analysis into account and examining the national case-law, gaps in the legal regulation of freedom of association of workers in Ukraine have been identified, and proposals for their elimination have been made. Keywords: freedom of association; trade union; protection against discrimination; strike; collective bargaining; case-law of the ECtHR

scholarly journals The Concept of Locus Standi in Collective Protection of Consumer Rights – the Pitfalls of Transposition of European Model into the Czech Legal Order

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 200-223
Author(s):  
Klára Hamuľáková
Keyword(s):  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Collective Actions ◽  
European Model ◽  
Locus Standi ◽  
Legal Standing ◽  
Collective Redress ◽  
Consumer Rights ◽  
Proposal A ◽  
Commission Recommendation

Summary The paper deals with collective protection of consumer rights from the European and Czech point of view. The attention is focused on the question of the concept of legal standing to bring a collective actions (i.e. locus standi) The article compares the legal regulation of legal standing to bring a collective action in the Commission Recommendation of 11 June 2013 on common principles for injunctive and compensatory collective redress mechanisms in the Member States concerning violations of rights granted under Union law (2013/396/EU), in the proposal a new Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers [COM/2018/184 final-2018/0089 (COD)] and the Czech bill for the Collective Redress Act.

“Collective Redress” in European Competition Law

2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 388-414
Author(s):  
Alexandra P. Mikroulea
Keyword(s):  
Hybrid System ◽  
Competition Law ◽  
Mixed System ◽  
Basic Question ◽  
Effective Implementation ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Collective Redress ◽  
Opt Out ◽  
Private Autonomy ◽  
European Competition Law

AbstractOpt-in or opt-out? That is the basic question to be answered. The decision to promote actions of “opt-in” type as opposed to those of the “opt-out” type, for the sake of private autonomy, does not ensure the effective application of european competition law. On the contrary, it may decrease the application’s intensity and effectiveness. Recent reforms among European state members such as in the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway are powerful indications that the opt-out principle may result in the effective implementation of competition law. There is no doubt that a mixed system (hybrid system), providing the court with the power to decide in favour of either the opt-in or the opt-out system, will result in better implementation of competition law. At the present time there are two pending cases in England (Dorothy Gibson and Mastercard) for which the decision on opt-out or opt-in are highly anticipated. Should the court decide, in one or both of the cases, on an opt-out approach, this will bring a momentous reevaluation of the entire collective redress concept.

Legal Expertise: A Critical Resource for Trade Unionists? Insights into the Confédération Française Démocratique du Travail

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cécile Guillaume
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Institutional Power ◽  
Collective Redress ◽  
Critical Resource ◽  
The Law ◽  
Legal Expertise

Abstract Based on in-depth qualitative research conducted in one of the major French trade unions (the CFDT), this article explores to what extent and under what conditions trade unions adopt different legal practices to further their members’ interests. In particular, it investigates how ‘legal framing’ has taken an increasingly pervasive place in trade union work, in increasingly decentralised industrial relations contexts, such as France. This article therefore argues that the use of the law has become a multifaceted and embedded repertoire of action for the CFDT in its attempt to consolidate its institutional power through various strategies, including collective redress and the use of legal expertise in collective bargaining and representation work.

scholarly journals A Law and Economics Perspective on the EU Directive on Representative Actions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Visscher ◽  
M. Faure
Keyword(s):  
Law And Economics ◽  
Class Action ◽  
Third Party ◽  
Collective Actions ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Directive ◽  
Opt Out ◽  
Contingency Fees ◽  
Party Funding ◽  
The Eu

AbstractThis article provides an analysis of the Directive on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers of 25 November 2020. The Directive enables qualified entities to bring representative actions on behalf of the consumer. The article uses a Law and Economics approach to stress the advantages of collective actions as a tool to remedy rational apathy and free-rider behaviour. The article therefore in principle welcomes the fact that this Directive will lead to all Member States having some form of collective redress. However, it is rather difficult to fit this Directive into the economic criteria for centralization as there is no obvious danger of cross-border externalities or a race-to-the-bottom. The article is critical of the fact that the Directive only provides for a representative action and does not mention the alternative of a group action (sometimes referred to as a class action). This is especially problematic if there are very few qualified entities that could bring the representative action. Furthermore, the fact that Member States may choose an opt-in procedure instead of an opt-out procedure is critically evaluated. The most problematic aspect of the Directive is the funding of the representative action. Punitive damages and contingency fees are rejected, and the possibility of third-party funding is restricted. It is therefore to be feared that this Directive, notwithstanding the good intentions, may not lead to much application in practice, since the question of how the representative action is to be financed is not resolved in any satisfactory manner.

scholarly journals Rebelling Against Time: Recreational Activism as Political Practice Among the Italian Precarious Youth

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (11) ◽  
pp. 1519-1538 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiara Milan
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Free Time ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
Political Commitment ◽  
Political Practice ◽  
General Decline ◽  
Italian Context

Hit by the economic and political crisis, young people in Italy face increased labor precarity and the disillusionment derived from the disappearance of the radical Left from the parliamentary arena. In the Italian context, economic hardship, the decrease of resources available for collective action, and the weakened mobilizing capacity that traditional mass organizations (such as trade unions and political parties) retained in the first decade of the 2000s brought about a general decline in intensity and visibility of street protests, leading to an apparent retreat of activism to the local level of action. Although the crisis had a negative impact on collective action, evidence reveals that more creative and less visible forms of societal and political commitment were adopted by young generations in these years. This article explores how the Italian youth in times of crisis engaged actively in alternative and unconventional forms of political commitment aimed at re-appropriating space, free time, and access to leisure, mainly by means of mutualistic practices. Based on data from qualitative semistructured interviews with key informants and activists, this article sheds light on recreational activism, adopted as a political practice by the Italian youth active in counter-cultural spaces, nowadays at the forefront of the struggle to oppose the commodification of free time and leisure.

scholarly journals Funkcje mediacyjne realizowane przez mediatora w trakcie mediacji. Wybrane zagadnienia

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 73
Author(s):  
Marzena Myślińska
Keyword(s):  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Professional Role ◽  
Legal Order ◽  
Mediation Process ◽  
Legal Relationship ◽  
The Social ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Impact

<p>The subject of this article is the analysis of the activity undertaken during mediation in the context of the characteristics of the mediation process and the normative conditions of the legal relationship and disputes resolved through this form of ADR. In order to implement the project, the content of the work will contain a list of functions performed by the mediator during mediation as ‘the environment for performing the role’ (which is not closed due to the dynamics of interaction in the negotiations). Their character and content determine the nature of the social and professional role of mediators in the Polish legal order, it also allows us to illustrate in detail the key issues for reflection on the professional role, including, for example, legal liability and conflict of roles. Mediation functions are diversified in terms of the frequency of their implementation depending, among other things, on the strategy of conducting mediation, the specificity of the dispute and the legal regulation of mediation. The discussion of the last of the indicated differentiating factors (i.e. the impact of universally binding law) will be reflected in the content of the paper.</p>

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