Trade union reform in Germany: some analytical and critical remarks concerning the current debate

The German trade unions are under pressure to modernise. Structural changes in the economy (persistent unemployment, tertiarisation of salaried employment, new approaches to production), the economic and social consequences of reunification with the GDR, and the modernisation of society (dissolution of traditional communities, pluralisation and individualisation) mean that traditional forms of policy and organisation, based on Fordist production and on the political culture of the industrial workforce, are no longer in keeping with the times. The drop in trade union membership since 1990 - in some cases extremely sharp - is evidence of this. Alongside the discussion of a more streamlined, more efficient organisation, initially prompted by financial crisis, a range of policy concepts is now being discussed which are intended to respond to the new needs of workers and to accord with the new structures in the economy and society : a tendency can be observed to develop a more co-operative policy alongside the conflict-oriented collective bargaining policy ; the political culture of the trade unions is being rethought ; the role of trade union officials is being remoulded to make them into "moderators". European unification, on the other hand, remains a rather marginal issue in the debate, a fact attributable to the dominant role of the German economy in the European Union.