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Impact of the crisis on industrial relations: collective bargaining and wage-setting under
pressure
Labour and Employment Law Issues in the 21st Century: Ireland, Europe, and the United States
University of Limerick 30 October 2015
Christian Welz
1. Prologue2. Actors u n d e r p r e s s u r e
3. Processes u n d e r p r e s s u r e
4. Outcomes u n d e r p r e s s u r e
5. Conclusions 6. Epilogue and discussion
Table of content
• “By viewing labour as a commodity, we at once get rid of the moral basis on which the relation of employer and employed should stand, and make the so-called law of the market the sole regulator of that relation.”
• (Dr John Kells Ingram, address to the British TUC in Dublin 1880)
1. Prologue
• Treaty of Versailles 1919 (article 427) first principle of the new ILO pro- claimed ‘ that
labour should not be regarded merely as a commodity or article of commerce
introduced by British delegation Gompers > personal defeat
• ILO DECLARATION OF PHILADELP (1944) labour is not a commodity
1. Prologue
2. Actors
Impact Member State
successful tripartite negotiation (8-10) BE, BG, CZ, EE, FR, LT, LV, NL, PL, PT
breakdown of tripartite negotiations (10---) BE(2011/12), ES, FI, GR, HR, HU, IE, IT, LU, PL(2011/12), SI
reorganisation of public actors and bodies ES, GR, HR, HU, IE, LU, RO
decline in trade union density CY, BG, DK, EE, IE, LT, LV, SE, SI, SK, UK
halt in trade union density decline/increase in trade union density
AT, CZ, DE, EE (for transport), LT
changes to membership of employer bodies CY (increase), DE (increase in members not bound by CA), LT (first decline then increase)
2. ActorsImpact MSdecreasing influence and visibility BE, DK, EE, HU, IE, LV, NL
increased cooperation between the social partners
DE, HU, LT, NL
emergence of new social movements ES, GR, PT, SI
increase government unilateralism BE, BG, EE, ES, GR, HR, IE, PL, PT, SI
new power balance among actors BG, EE, ES, GR, LT, LV, PT
Trade union density _ 2011 v 2012 EIRO/ETUI 2013
FR PL HU CZ ES DE BG SI IE HR LU BE DK FI0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80% of workforce 2011 2012
Employer density _ 2012 v 2013 EIRO 2013/14
LT PL EE HR SK LV UK CZ BG EU DK IT IE FR FI BE LU SI SE NL AT0
20
40
60
80
100
120% of employees in companies members of an EO
2011 2012
3. Processes
PROCESSES - SUMMARY
Type of change MSMain level(s) of bargaining: Decentralisation AT BG CY EL ES FR IE IT RO SI Recentralisation BE FIHorizontal coordination across bargaining units
AT ES HU IE RO SE SK
Linkages between levels of bargaining Ordering between levels EL ES PTOpening and opt-out clauses AT BG CY DE EL ES FI FR IE IT NO PT
SE SIExtending bargaining competence EL FR HU PT ROReach and continuity of bargaining Extension procedures EL IE SK PT ROIncreased / changed use of existing procedures
BG DE IT
Continuation beyond expiry EE EL ES HR PTMinimum wage setting and indexation mechanisms
Minimum wage setting CY DE EL ES HR HU IE PL PT SI SKIndexation BE CY ES IT LU
Country Multi-employer (MEB) or Single-employer (SEB) bargaining prevalent 2008 2011
Austria MEB MEBBelgium MEB MEBBulgaria Mixed MixedCroatia MEB MEB
Cyprus Mixed MixedCzech Republic SEB SEBDenmark MEB MEBEstonia SEB SEBFinland MEB MEBFrance MEB MEBGermany MEB MEBGreece MEB MEBHungary SEB SEBIreland MEB SEBItaly MEB MEBLatvia SEB SEBLithuania SEB SEBLuxembourg MEB MEBMalta SEB SEBNetherlands MEB MEBNorway MEB MEBPoland SEB SEBPortugal MEB MEBRomania MEB SEBSlovakia Mixed MixedSlovenia MEB MEBSpain MEB MEBSweden MEB MEBUnited Kingdom SEB SEB
Trade Unions
Intersectoral level
Government
Employers
Intersectoral level
Sectoral level Sectoral level
Company level
Levels of CB - wages
Company level
BelgiumFinland
AustriaDenmark1France1GermanyGreeceIreland1ItalyLuxembourg1NetherlandsPortugal1Spain1Sweden1
Denmark2France2Ireland2Luxembourg2 Portugal2Spain2Sweden2UK
Trade Unions
Intersectoral level
Government
Employers
Intersectoral level
Sectoral level Sectoral level
Company level
Levels of CB - wages
Company level
Slovenia 1
Bulagaria1Cyprus 1Slovakia 1Slovenia 2
Bulgaria2CroatiaCyprus 2Czech Rep.EstoniaHungaryLatviaLithuaniaMaltaPolandRomaniaSlovakia 2
Company level
Sector level
National level
AT
CY
EL
IT
BG
ES
FR
FI
LT
RO
Trends in main levels of CB
BE
PT
• continental Western, central Eastern and Nordic IR regimes apply the favourability’ principle to govern the relationship between different levels of CB CAs at lower levels can only improve on standards established by higher levels exceptions: IE and the UK > reflecting their different legal tradition based on voluntarism
• FR FR made changes already in 2004 (loi Fillon)
• ES 2011 law inverted the principle as between sector or provincial agreements and company
agreementsEL 2011 law inverts the principle between the sector and company levels for the duration of
the financial assistance until at least 2015• PT
2012 Labour Code inverts the principle, but allows EOs and TUs to negotiate a clause in higher-level CA reverting to the favourability principle
Ordering / favourability principle
opening clauses in sector/cross-sector CAs provide scope for further negotiation on aspects of wages at company level
opt-out clauses permit derogation under certain conditions from the wage standards specified in the sector/cross-sector CA
changes in opening clauses 6 MSAT, DE, FI, IT, PT, SE
changes in opt-out clauses 8 MSBG, CY, EL, ES, FR, IE, IT, SI
•
Changes in opening/opt-out clauses
• changes: EL, FR, HU, PT and RO
• EL under 2011 legislation, CAs can be concluded in companies with
fewer than 50 employees with unspecified ‘associations of persons’ these must represent at least 60% of the employees concerned
• RO legislation (2011) introduces harder criteria for trade TU
representativeness where TUs do not meet the new criteria at company level, EOs can
now negotiate CAs with unspecified elected employee reps
Extension of CB competence
Extension mechanisms
of the 28 MS > 23 MS have extension mechanisms or a functional equivalent (IT)
no legal procedure for extending collective agreements in
CY, DK, MT SE and UK changes to either extension procedures or in their use
in 8 MSBG, DE, EL, IE, PT, RO, SK, IT
clauses providing for agreements to continue to have effect beyond the date of expiry until a new agreement is concluded are intended to protect workers should employers refuse to negotiate a renewal
they are found in a 9 MS at least AT, DK, EE, EL, ES, HR, PT, SE, SK
changes have been made to such provisions in 5 MS EE, EL, ES, HR, PT
Continuation of CAs beyond expiry
4. OutcomesImpact MSinconclusive outcomes BG, CY, CZ ES, MT, NL
decrease in number of agreements CY, CZ, EE, LV, MT, PT, RO, SI
increase in duration of agreements AT, DE
decrease in duration of agreements BG, CY, DK, GR, LV, ES, SE
decrease in the level of pay increases AT, ES, FI, NL
pay cuts or freezes AT, BE, BG, DE, DK, ES, FI, GR, HU, IE, IT, LT, LU, LV, NL, PL, PT, SI, SK, UK
working time reduction/short-time working AT, BE, BG, DE, FR, HU, IT, LT, NL, PL, SI, SK
non-renewal of agreements BG, CY, EE, ES
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
sector CA194
164 166 115 46 46 72
companyCA
97 87 64 55 39 49 80
total CA 291 251 230 170 85 95 152
extension 137 102 116 17 12 9 +/_15
coverage /in 1000 pers.
1,895 1,397 1,407 1,237 328 243 246
No. of CAs in PT
• change has been concentrated amongst 6 MS, whose WSMs have each undergone multiple changes CY, EL, ES, IE, PT, RO been in receipt of financial assistance packages from the ‘troika’ changes in WSMs were required in all except ES
• in a further 4 MS there have been some changes to WSMs HR, HU, IT and SI change primarily driven by domestic actors > governments or SP
• in a majority of 18 MS WSMs have seen few or no changes since 2008
5. Conclusions
• impact of the ‘troika’ in inducing changes to WSMsamongst those countries receiving financial assistance packages is clear
• government-imposed measures in these countries have substantially reconfigured WSMs
• impact of the new European Economic governance less clear
5. Conclusions
• ILO DECLARATION OF PHILADELP (1944) labour is not a commodity
• wage setting in the crisis and the new economic governance …..
• towards a marketisation of wages (Marginson/Welz)
• towards a re-commodification of labour ?
6. Epilogue and discussion
Further information
slideshare Christian Welz
European industrial relations dictionary