Digitalisation in the public sector presents both opportunities and challenges, impacting working conditions, work organisation and social dialogue, yet research on its effects remains limited, especially in Germany. In particular, the role of digitalisation in shaping work dynamics, workload...

There are at least three existential challenges to contemporary societies, as we know them namely first, the complete rupture of the social pact which characterized Glorious Decades after WWII in most of Western societies; and second, the deepening of the patterns of informatization and...

Trade unions play an important role in ensuring that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are integrated into the development agenda and strategies of countries. The findings from indepth online interviews with trade union officers from seven national labour confederations and senior ILO...

Old and new EU member states still adopt quite different labor market institutions and policies: convergence has been partial and limited. Nevertheless, a new agreement is spreading on the importance of well-developed, coordinated institutions, supported by social dialogue, in view of the...

Does employers' association (EA) membership affect wages? Such effects, positive or negative, could follow from increased productivity, employer collusion, or other channels. We analyse this question drawing on matched employer-employee panel data, including time-varying EA affiliation and...

This position paper outlines the characteristics of the trends at stake in affecting the twin transition in the European automotive industry, and the political economy of the actors behind such transition. We first describe the automation and digitalization processes in the automotive sector and...

This study provides an analysis of how occupational safety and health (OSH) regulation responded to the circumstances of key workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. It explains the objectives of OSH regulation, including its main elements and how it has evolved over time. It draws from national...

The international transfer of dual systems of vocational education and training (VET) has grown on a global scale. This is due to low youth unemployment rates and high economic productivity in German-speaking countries, where the dual systems are historically rooted. At the governance level, an...

Social partners (trade unions and employers' associations) and their representativeness can shape labour institutions and economic and social outcomes in many countries. In this paper, we argue that, when examining social partners' representativeness, it is important to consider both affiliation...

The study assesses the social dialogue, freedom of association and collective bargaining institutions and practices in the public service among five member-countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), namely Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand....

Using the cases of Ireland and Portugal during the post-2008 Great Recession, we argue that unions' ideological formations around social concertation are central in aiding them to navigate their options about whether to engage in concessionary bargaining with government under crisis conditions....

Does employers' association (EA) membership affect the wages paid by firms? Such effects could follow from several channels, including increased productivity, different management practices, or employer collusion promoted by EA affiliation. We test these hypotheses drawing on detailed matched...

This report analyses the role of social dialogue and collective bargaining in addressing the challenges faced by the civil aviation sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. Social partner involvement in the measures introduced to mitigate the negative impacts of the pandemic varies across European...

Local opposition to a renewable energy project shows competition among various ideas and values in the energy transition process. Offshore wind farms (OWFs), one of the most promising renewable energy sources, are still not free from conflicts. This study aims to enrich our understanding of what...

Social dialogue, which forms part of the regulation of labour relations in the public sector, can take a variety of forms ranging from the simple act of publishing informal recommendations, or consultation and sharing information to the most formal and binding negotiated agreements, bargaining...

Germany has suffered an inflationary shock broadly commensurate with that of the Euro Area as a whole, with energy playing a slightly larger, food a somewhat smaller than average role. Because of differences in consumption patterns, the current inflationary surge hits low-income households...

Dutch inflation has risen steeply recently, despite unprecedented cuts in energy taxes and VAT, to a record high of 17% in September 2022. Energy has been by far the major driver of the inflation surge, but inflation has been broadening in 2022, with food price rises above 10% since July and...

This chapter examines the recent evolution of inflation and its drivers in Greece, as well as the policies undertaken to limit its increase and mitigate its impact on households and firms. Greece is an interesting case as the current inflationary episode and the challenges it creates for real...

French consumer price inflation (as measured by the HICP) rose by 6.2% in September 2022 as compared to September 2021, against 10% in the euro area. Inflation rose less rapidly in France than in the euro area primarily due to a less rapid rise in energy prices: energy prices contributed to...

Like in other European countries, several supply shocks (bottlenecks related to the end of the pandemic, tensions in international gas and oil prices, and war in Ukraine) have led to a rise in the inflation rate in Spain since March 2021. This has been amplified by the functioning of energy...