IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/treure/v21y2015i3p343-357.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Central and Eastern European trade unions after the EU enlargement

Author

Listed:
  • Marta Kahancová

    (Central European Labour Studies Institute, Bratislava, Slovakia)

Abstract

This article presents recent responses on the part of Central and Eastern European (CEE) trade unions to economic and social challenges in the post-enlargement period. Shifting the focus away from structural union weakness, the article looks at trade union potential for action, organizational capacity, resource building and policy influence. Despite their structural weaknesses, CEE unions demonstrate capacities that might enable them actively to shape working conditions and their internal resources are not completely depleted. However, the character of these resources and the kinds of union action have been changing. Traditional resources based on membership and involvement in collective bargaining have lost prominence in favour of unions’ increased focus on mobilization, public protests and political support.

Suggested Citation

  • Marta Kahancová, 2015. "Central and Eastern European trade unions after the EU enlargement," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 21(3), pages 343-357, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:treure:v:21:y:2015:i:3:p:343-357
    DOI: 10.1177/1024258915585946
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1024258915585946
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/1024258915585946?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Marta Kahancová, 2013. "The demise of social partnership or a balanced recovery? The crisis and collective bargaining in Slovakia," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 19(2), pages 171-183, May.
    2. Jan Drahokoupil & Martin Myant, 2015. "Labour’s legal resources after 2004," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 21(3), pages 327-341, August.
    3. Magdalena Bernaciak, 2013. "Social dialogue revival or ‘PR corporatism’? Negotiating anti-crisis measures in Poland and Bulgaria1," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 19(2), pages 239-251, May.
    4. Epp Kallaste & Charles Woolfson, 2013. "Negotiated responses to the crisis in the Baltic countries," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 19(2), pages 253-266, May.
    5. Streeck, Wolfgang, 1992. "National Diversity, Regime Competition and Institutional Deadlock: Problems in Forming a European Industrial Relations System," Journal of Public Policy, Cambridge University Press, vol. 12(4), pages 301-330, October.
    6. Magdalena Bernaciak, 2015. "Beyond the CEE 'black box': crisis and industrial relations in the new EU member states," Working Papers 13554, European Trade Union Institute (ETUI).
    7. Richard Hyman, 1997. "The Future of Employee Representation," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 35(3), pages 309-336, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Vera Glassner, 2013. "Central and eastern European industrial relations in the crisis: national divergence and path-dependent change," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 19(2), pages 155-169, May.
    2. Francesco Bagnardi & Valentina Petrović, 2020. "Post-socialist labour and the dual logic of collective action: workers’ unrest and trade union strategy in Fiat Automobiles Serbia," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 26(4), pages 415-430, November.
    3. Magdalena Bernaciak, 2015. "All roads lead to decentralization? Collective bargaining trends and prospects in Central and Eastern Europe," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 21(3), pages 373-381, August.
    4. John T. Addison & Alex Bryson & Paulino Teixeira & André Pahnke & Lutz Bellmann, 2013. "The Extent of Collective Bargaining and Workplace Representation: Transitions between States and their Determinants. A Comparative Analysis of Germany and Great Britain," Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Scottish Economic Society, vol. 60(2), pages 182-209, May.
    5. Ines Wagner & Nathan Lillie, 2014. "European Integration and the Disembedding of Labour Market Regulation: Transnational Labour Relations at the European Central Bank Construction Site," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(2), pages 403-419, March.
    6. Alex Bryson, 2001. "Union Effects On Managerial and Employee Perceptions of Employee Relations in Britain," CEP Discussion Papers dp0494, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    7. Alan Tuckman & Jeremé Snook, 2014. "Between consultation and collective bargaining? The changing role of non-union employee representatives: a case study from the finance sector," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(1), pages 77-97, January.
    8. Keith Sisson, 2001. "Pacts for employment and competitiveness – an opportunity to reflect on the role and practice of collective bargaining," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 7(4), pages 600-615, November.
    9. John T. Addison & Claus Schnabel, 2011. "Worker Directors: A German Product that Did Not Export?," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(2), pages 354-374, April.
    10. Nathan Lillie, 2012. "Subcontracting, Posted Migrants and Labour Market Segmentation in Finland," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 50(1), pages 148-167, March.
    11. Christian Lévesque & Gregor Murray, 2010. "Understanding union power: resources and capabilities for renewing union capacity," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 16(3), pages 333-350, August.
    12. Wenchuan Liu & James P. Guthrie & Patrick C. Flood & Sarah Maccurtain, 2009. "Unions and the Adoption of High Performance Work Systems: Does Employment Security Play a Role?," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 63(1), pages 109-127, October.
    13. Magdalena Bernaciak & Aurora Trif, 2023. "Multiple strategies but small gains: Trade union revitalization and power resources in Central Eastern Europe after 2008," European Journal of Industrial Relations, , vol. 29(1), pages 83-102, March.
    14. Anne‐marie Greene & Gill Kirton & Maria Koumenta & Amy Humphris, 2021. "The gender representation gap: implications for workplace union effectiveness," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(1), pages 40-63, January.
    15. Berndt Keller & Frank Werner, 2012. "New Forms of Employee Involvement at European Level — The Case of the European Company (SE)," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 50(4), pages 620-643, December.
    16. Johannes Meuer & Henric van der Ent, 2012. "Revisiting system theories in Strategic Human Resource Management - A set-theoretic analysis of high performing firms in the UK," Economics of Education Working Paper Series 0076, University of Zurich, Department of Business Administration (IBW).
    17. A. Tarik Timur & Daphne Taras & Allen Ponak, 2012. "‘Shopping for Voice’: Do Pre-Existing Non-Union Representation Plans Matter When Employees Unionize?," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 50(2), pages 214-238, June.
    18. Leon Gooberman & Marco Hauptmeier & Edmund Heery, 2018. "Contemporary Employer Interest Representation in the United Kingdom," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 32(1), pages 114-132, February.
    19. Alex Bryson & Michael White, 2016. "Unions and the economic basis of attitudes," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(4), pages 360-378, July.
    20. Guglielmo Meardi & Melanie Simms & Duncan Adam, 2021. "Trade unions and precariat in Europe: Representative claims," European Journal of Industrial Relations, , vol. 27(1), pages 41-58, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:treure:v:21:y:2015:i:3:p:343-357. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.