What happened to collective bargaining during the great recession?

Abstract

Collective bargaining over labour conditions between unions and employers is a key labour market institution in democratic societies, guaranteed by international and national law. Its coverage, organization and impact have varied over time and across countries. Inclusive bargaining, conducted by employers' associations with a mandate to bargain, and supported by the state, received a strong impulse during the interwar Depression. In the Great Recession a more exclusive version based on enterprise bargaining appears to have been favoured by governments and international agencies. How this relates to changes in bargaining coverage, multi-employer and multi-level bargaining, rules on extension and opening clauses is the subject of this paper, which surveys developments in 38 OECD and EU countries. A distinction is made between long-term and crisis-related changes, and between regulatory and non-regulatory changes during the Great Recession.

Collective Bargaining Through the Magnifying Glass: A Comparison Between the Netherlands and Portugal

“…One reason for this is that, in the Netherlands, union presence at the firm level is limited. The metal industry is somewhat of an exception (Visser, 2016a). Trade unions retain a relatively strong presence in this sector also at the local level, which makes two-tier bargaining a possibility in principle.…”

Do trade unions in Central and Eastern Europe make a difference?

“…Employers' organizations have also often been incapable of ensuring support from their members (in terms of time, money, and expertise) to support negotiations and to engage in policy dialogue [4]. This reflects the weakness of these organizations, their low coverage, and lack of trust in social dialogue in general.…”

“…During the Great Recession of 2008-2009, collective bargaining coverage levels decreased further in some of the CEE countries (Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia, all of which abandoned the national agreements in the private sector in 2005 [4], IGA MAGDA | Do trade unions in Central and Eastern Europe make a difference? [12]).…”

Collective Bargaining Through the Magnifying Glass: A Comparison Between the Netherlands and Portugal

“…Such agreements can shape expectations and establish norms in relation to collective bargaining and macro-economic policy, without imposing any formal rigidity on the pay policies of firms (Visser, 2013b). This type of coordination requires inclusive and representative employer and union confederations.…”

“…In many countries with national or sectoral bargaining, decentralisation has been "the name of the game in industrial relations" (Visser, 2013b). Decentralisation refers to the creation of more space for negotiations over working conditions at the level of the firm, establishment or workplace (Visser, 2016b), in contrast to the sectoral or national levels.…”