Industrial relations in central and eastern Europe in the perspective of EU enlargement
Industrial relations in central and eastern Europe in the perspective of EU enlargement

Summary/Abstract: After the main period of transformation Central European societies are now entering a normal or organic phase of development, where the behavioural patterns of established market economy actors can, or should, be implemented. To put it bluntly, trade unions can now become real trade unions instead of the multi-functional social actors that they were in the transformation years. They had to face serious legitimacy problems and their priorities were the support of the reform process, which sometimes contradicted the protection of workers’ interests. This is also the context in which we approach the issue of EU integration. Are trade unions and the institutions of social dialogue prepared for this new role demanded by emerging market economies on the periphery of the EU under circumstances of globalisation? The main issue in this study is an examination of the state of industrial relations, with a focus on trade unions in CEE countries with respect to their role in the transformation process and from the perspective of future EU integration.

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