Lifelong Learning and Social Partnership: A Comparative Overview of Twelve European Countries

Abstract

The notion of ‘lifelong learning’ (LLL) has gained in importance in the European debates since the 1990s, together with the assumption that the social partners at European and national levels should be actively involved in harmonized policies in the field. The paper questions the possibility and potential for such an active involvement of national-level trade unions and employer organizations in European policies of LLL. Based on comparative empirical data collected in twelve Member States, the paper shows that social partnership in LLL seems to be a distant objective in a number of national cases, notably because there is no consensus on its aims, and because the national institutional context prevails in the determination of their role in education and training.