2013-04-15

Danubius Health Spa Resort Helia, Budapest

The aim of this conference is to discuss the state of industrial relations and social dialogue in the EU on the basis of the Industrial Relations in Europe 2012 report. It will take place in the context of discussions on the strengthening the social dimension of EMU including social dialogue.

The Commission''s Industrial Relations in Europe report is planned to be adopted early in 2013. While the major theme of the report is the impact of the on-going crisis on industrial relations in the public sector, there is also a focus on industrial relations in the central and eastern European Member States, likely developments and the policy instruments available at EU level to address the issues involved.

The on-going crisis in the European economy and the adjustment policies being implemented in many Member States are having a serious impact on employment and working conditions in the public sector and consequently on industrial relations and collective bargaining. The Industrial Relations in Europe 2013 report analyses the effects of such policies on industrial relations in the public sector across the EU.

There is a wide diversity in industrial relations traditions and practices in the new Member States as there is in the EU-15 Member States. Nevertheless, there tends to be more emphasis on bipartite collective bargaining in the EU-15 Member States while the main form of social dialogue in the new Member States is often tripartite and national concertation. Where it does occur, bipartite collective bargaining is largely limited to company level bargaining. Furthermore, in many of the central and eastern European member states, the social partners are confronted with organisational weaknesses and limited financial resources.

From the European perspective, this poses a challenge in terms of effective participation in European social dialogue and the social partners'' ability to implement and monitor texts and agreements as well as their capacity to make use of the possibility to implement certain provisions in EU directives by collective bargaining.

The aim of this conference is

- to present the main findings of Industrial Relations in Europe 2012,

- to examine the similarities and differences in industrial relations in the central and eastern European Member States,

- to provide a forum for mutual learning between all EU Member States,

- to identify the main challenges and the policy support which can be provided at national and European level.