Der Tarifvertrag: Ausdruck privater oder politischer Autonomie?

The basic understanding of collective bargaining autonomy is highly contested in conceptual and normative terms. Today’s prevailing understanding of collective bargaining autonomy as collectively exercised private autonomy limits its scope conceptually, operates restrictively in adjudication of the law of collective agreements and works against important legislative projects to support the collective agreement system. The author argues that this prevailing understanding must be countered in jurisprudence, before the labour courts and in legal policy with the contention that collective bargaining autonomy is a form of political autonomy. Collective bargaining autonomy empowers free coalitions as parties to collective agreements to set legal norms independently of state policy. The exercise of this autonomous power is necessary to shape industrial relations fairly. This is why safeguarding the functioning of collective bargaining autonomy is an eminent state task that has been neglected by state policy for too long.