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Sociale dialoog

Sociale dialoog kan worden gedefinieerd als onderhandelingen, raadplegingen, gezamenlijke acties, besprekingen en informatie-uitwisselingen waarbij werkgevers en werknemers betrokken zijn. Een goed functionerende sociale dialoog tussen uiteenlopende actoren op diverse niveaus is een belangrijk instrument voor de totstandbrenging van arbeidsvoorwaarden. De sociale dialoog brengt de belangen van werknemers en werkgevers in evenwicht en draagt bij aan het economische concurrentievermogen en de sociale samenhang.

Recentelijk is in de beleidsdiscussie op Europees niveau naar voren gekomen dat er, voornamelijk sinds de crisis van 2008, nieuwe debatten over sociale rechtvaardigheid, democratie, kwaliteit van werk en nieuwe modellen van arbeidsverhoudingen zijn ontstaan, die een uitdaging vormen voor de traditionele arbeidsverhoudingen en systemen van sociale dialoog.

Dertig jaar na de historische inauguratie van de Europese sociale dialoog in Val Duchesse te Brussel, heeft de Commissie het proces nieuw leven ingeblazen met de lancering van een nieuwe start voor de sociale dialoog tijdens een evenement op hoog niveau dat socialepartnerorganisaties uit heel Europa op 5 maart 2015 samenbracht. De Europese sociale dialoog is een instrument van het Europees sociaal beleid, dat rechtstreeks bijdraagt aan het vormgeven van arbeidswetgeving en -beleid op EU-niveau.

Topic

Recent updates

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From January to June 2022, Eurofound supported the work of France's presidency of the Council of the EU, providing valuable research results on specific topics linked with the presidency priorities.

Web page
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From July to December 2023, Eurofound supported the work of Spain's presidency of the Council of the EU, providing valuable research results on specific topics linked with the presidency priorities.

Web page

EU context

Het werk van Eurofound

Beleidsmakers hebben solide bewijs nodig om de veranderingen op de arbeidsmarkt te begrijpen en te reageren op de veranderende dynamiek van arbeidsverhoudingen in Europa. De Stichting gebruikt gegevens en analyses van haar netwerk van correspondenten in de 28 EU-lidstaten en Noorwegen om trends en patronen in kaart te brengen en te wijzen op voorbeelden van een goed functionerende sociale dialoog op Europees en nationaal niveau.

In haar onderzoek bestudeert de Stichting aspecten zoals werknemersparticipatie, collectieve onderhandelingen, werknemersvertegenwoordiging en arbeidsverhoudingen op alle niveaus. Ze onderzoekt in welke mate arbeidsverhoudingen zich aan de opkomst van multinationals hebben aangepast. Ze vertrekt van een mondiaal perspectief door te kijken naar arbeidsverhoudingsstelsels en resultaten in economieën buiten de EU, zoals de Verenigde Staten en Japan

Belangrijkste bijdragen

De Stichting heeft in meer dan 40 jaar een grote hoeveelheid werk verricht waarmee ze de vele veranderende facetten van de sociale dialoog in Europa op diverse niveaus - bedrijfs-, nationaal, Europees en internationaal niveau - in kaart heeft gebracht.

In de laatste jaren heeft de Stichting diepgaande analyses uitgevoerd van diverse kwesties die centraal staan in de sociale dialoog, zoals: 

De representativiteitsstudies die de Stichting in meerdere sectoren heeft uitgevoerd, na een opdracht hiertoe van de Commissie in 2006, verstrekken de nodige basisinformatie voor de oprichting en werking van de Europese comités voor de sectorale sociale dialoog.

Bronnen

Het woordenboek Europese arbeidsverhoudingen, dat in 2005 is opgesteld als een online referentie-instrument voor beleidsmakers en beroepsbeoefenaars, is een waardevolle bron van informatie over werkgelegenheid en arbeidsverhoudingen in de EU. De landenprofielen betreffende het arbeidsleven verstrekken relevante contextuele informatie over structuren, instanties en regelgeving die van belang zijn voor het arbeidsleven in de lidstaten van de EU28 en Noorwegen en op EU-niveau.

De databanken collectieve salarisonderhandelingen en lonen, arbeidstijd en collectieve geschillen zijn bedoeld om onderzoekers en beleidsmakers te voorzien van kwantitatieve en kwalitatieve informatie over deze onderwerpen uit alle EU-lidstaten en Noorwegen vanaf 2000 tot heden.

Key outputs

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De afgelopen jaren was er, met uitzondering van enkele tussenliggende pieken, sprake van een algemene daling van het aantal collectieve acties in de EU-lidstaten. Tijdens de COVID-19-pandemie heeft deze tendens...

7 februari 2022
Publication
Research report
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This publication consists of individual country reports on working life during 2020 for 29 countries – the 27 EU Member States, Norway and the United Kingdom. The country reports summarise...

23 maart 2021
Publication
Other
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In het kader van zijn mandaat om de dialoog tussen de sociale partners te stimuleren, monitort en analyseert Eurofound al meer dan veertig jaar ontwikkelingen in stelsels van arbeidsverhoudingen op...

11 december 2020
Publication
Flagship report

Current and ongoing research

 

In the course of the programming period 2021–2024, Eurofound will continue regular monitoring of social dialogue, including through the EU PolicyWatch database.

Other topics addressed include:

  • Monitoring of the role of national social partners in the European semester and analysis of quality and effectiveness of their involvement 
  • Summary of discussions on capacity-building social dialogue to support a meaningful and effective social dialogue 
  • Research on industrial relations covering topics related to both social dialogue and working life developments, including updates on collectively agreed pay
  • Representativeness studies on a variety of sectors to provide the European Commission required information to assess the representativeness of European sectoral social partner organisations.

 

Eurofound expert(s)

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Ricardo Rodriguez Contreras is a research manager in the Working Life unit at Eurofound and focuses on comparative industrial relations, social dialogue and collective bargaining...

Research manager,
Working life research unit
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Mária Sedláková is a research officer in the Working Life unit at Eurofound. She is responsible for drafting overview reports for sectoral representativeness studies, management...

Research officer,
Working life research unit
Publications results (251)

Three years after the adoption of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), this report reviews the quality of the social partners’ involvement in 2023 in the ongoing implementation of reforms and investments funded by that initiative. It also examines the quality of their involvement in the prepa

26 February 2024

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the furniture sector.

08 December 2023

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the woodworking sector.

21 November 2023

This study provides information to allow for an assessment of the representativeness of the national and supranational social partners at cross-industry level in the EU.

09 November 2023

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the professional football sector.

26 October 2023

Automation and digitisation technologies, including artificial intelligence, are rapidly evolving and becoming increasingly powerful and pervasive. The full range of their effects in the workplace is yet to be seen. It is, however, important not only to explore the ethical implications of digital te

12 September 2023

After a long period of price stability, inflation has made a remarkable comeback in the EU. In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the energy crisis spurred by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the disruption of the international supply chain, among other factors, have driven up the

06 September 2023

In 2022, the European Semester process was updated to take into account the launch of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) in February 2021. Over the past year, Member States have implemented national recovery and resilience plans (RRPs) in a context of huge geopolitical and economic upheaval

29 March 2023

This paper provides an overview of the involvement of the social partners in policymaking and social dialogue in recent years, primarily at national peak level. It will focus on the evolution of social dialogue over the past decade and a half in terms of its response to external shocks, focusing on

20 March 2023

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the civil aviation sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participat

20 December 2022

Online resources results (435)

Poland: Latest working life developments – Q3 2016

A protest in the public healthcare system, discontent in the education sector, significant legislative initiatives and support for a ban on Sunday shop opening are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Poland in the

Greece: Public opinion and social dialogue on labour market reforms

Ahead of further negotiations on the terms of the Greek bailout, two recent surveys are directly linked to the issues under negotiation and reflect the views of public opinion. The government has also organised tripartite meetings with social partners in an attempt to seek mutually acceptable

Finland: Tripartite Competitiveness Pact signed

The ‘Competitiveness Pact’, a tripartite labour market agreement, was signed in June 2016 after over a year of difficult negotiations. The Pact involves a nationally and internationally exceptional deterioration of workers’ terms and conditions. The negotiation process had disruptive repercussions

Denmark: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

The debate on EU membership sparked by the Brexit referendum, the current state of tripartite negotiations on the integration of refugees and an occupational health and safety case at Siemens Wind Power are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest

Slovenia: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Deterioration of social dialogue, discontent among public sector workers after the police wage increase, small wins for workers and vocational education and training priorities are among the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working

EU Level: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

The latest Country Specific Recommendations for Member States, the recent EU-level boost for social dialogue, the latest developments on the revision of the Posting of Workers Directive and recent migration initiatives are among the main topics of interest in this article. This update reports on the

Lithuania: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

The debate on the controversial new Labour Code, the opening of an information centre for posted and migrant workers, and the rise in the minimum monthly wage are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Lithuania in the

Romania: Relaunch of the Economic and Social Council

A new Government emergency ordinance is expected to re-launch the activity of the most important consultative tripartite body, the Economic and Social Council.

France: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Adoption of the new labour code, the failure of collective bargaining on unemployment schemes and a study on the negative impact of night work are among the main points of interest of this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in France in the second quarter

Romania: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Opposition to new measures to reduce public sector wage inequality, a fresh start for the Social and Economic Council, and new measures to reconcile family and working life are the main topics of interest of this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in Romanian working


Blogs results (6)

The COVID-19 pandemic made us acutely aware of how dependent our society is on certain essential workers. We felt deep gratitude towards workers in healthcare especially, because they worked ceaselessly in often-difficult conditions.

22 november 2023
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Decision-makers approached minimum wage setting for 2021 cautiously due to the economic uncertainty caused by the pandemic. Despite this, nominal statutory minimum wages rose in most Member States and the UK, although at lower rates than in recent years.

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In the context of the ongoing trend of a fall in collective bargaining coverage, and recent calls at EU level to promote collective bargaining coverage as an instrument to support fair and decent wages, new data from Eurofound’s fourth European Company Survey (ECS) show that two-thirds of workers (i

28 oktober 2020
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The workings of industrial relations are constantly evolving. In this blog piece, Eurofound authors Christian Welz and Ricardo Rodriguez Contreras discuss a tool that Eurofound has developed to enable this process of change to be monitored and analysed, enabling stakeholders in Member States to asse

28 maart 2018
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Europe has gone through significant economic change over the past decade. Businesses have had to manage the challenges posed by the financial crisis, globalisation and a rapidly changing labour market. Eurofound's new report Win-win arrangements: Innovative measures through social dialogue at compan

3 oktober 2016
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The new European Commission (EC) under President Jean-Claude Juncker is committed to re-launching social dialogue and a first step was taken with the organisation of a high-level conference in Brussels on 5 March. The aim of the conference was to discuss concrete ways to strengthen social dialogue w

20 april 2015
Upcoming publications results (7)

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the graphical industry. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation

July 2025

This report reviews the quality of the national social partners’ involvement in the implementation of the reforms and investments shaping the digital and green transition in the context of national policymaking. These reforms and investments stem mainly from the Recovery and Resilience Facility.

March 2025

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the extractive industries sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective par

December 2024

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the construction sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participatio

December 2024

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the chemical sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in

December 2024

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the road transport sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participat

December 2024

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the postal and courier activities sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effec

November 2024

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