Abstract

Once considered an exception among the post-socialist countries owing to its inclusive industrial relations system and the role of social dialogue, the conditions for the social compromise in Slovenia have eroded significantly since mid-2000s. The pressures intensified in the post-2008 period when social dialogue at the national level virtually collapsed, the gap in working conditions and wages between sectors of the economy widened, while precarisation and increased unemployment seriously undermined the position of trade unions at the company level. In cases when collective bargaining was not mere ‘concession bargaining’ it often resulted in reduction of various forms of inequality but, with regard to weaker unions and non-unionised segments of the labour force, union actions at the national level proved crucial for imposing certain minimum standards. On the rare occurrences when meaningful social dialogue at the national level did take place, the results were more pronounced on the flexibility rather than the security side.

Highlights

  • Embarking on the transition from socialism to capitalism in the early 1990s, various paths to capitalism as well as distinctively different ‘final destinations’ were open to the societies of central and eastern Europe.1 Most commonly, the developed capitalist societies are grouped in one of two ideal-types of institutional model: liberal market economies, which rely mainly on market coordination, and coordinated market economies, in which non-market coordination plays an important role (Hall and Soskice 2001)

  • In the early 2000s the main institutions were in place and the phase of preparation for a ‘soft landing’ in the European Union (EU) and European Exchange Rate Mechanism 2 (ERM2) began

  • In the agreement that ended the public sector strike in 2012, the public sector trade unions managed to include certain provisions that made curtailments of welfare rights less severe than originally announced and reached a compromise with the government to lift these austerity measures once the annual rate of gross domestic product (GDP) growth exceeds 2.5 per cent, which at least partially preserved the past results of social convergence in this sphere

Read more

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Embarking on the transition from socialism to capitalism in the early 1990s, various paths to capitalism as well as distinctively different ‘final destinations’ were open to the societies of central and eastern Europe. Most commonly, the developed capitalist societies are grouped in one of two ideal-types of institutional model: liberal market economies, which rely mainly on market coordination, and coordinated market economies, in which non-market coordination plays an important role (Hall and Soskice 2001). Most of the eight acceding central and eastern European (CEE) countries followed a path towards a (neo)liberal regime and adopted a dependent market economy model, characterised by specific institutions and comparative advantages built around these economies’ (subordinated) role in the hierarchy of international corporations (Nölke and Vliegenthart 2009). Dependent market economies are characterised by their dependence on foreign direct investment (FDI) for raising investment and their most important companies are hierarchically controlled by the headquarters of foreign multinationals. This puts the latter in a perfect position to erode the inclusiveness of industrial relations institutions and instead rely on selective company-level agreements. INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS AND SOCIAL DIALOGUE AS A LINK BETWEEN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL CONVERGENCE IN SLOVENIA

Formation of Industrial Relations Actors and Establishing Preconditions for Social Dialogue (1987–92)
Impact of Industrial Relations on Economic and Social Convergence (1987–92)
Striving for Real Convergence through Social Dialogue (1992–2001)
Impact of Industrial Relations on Economic and Social Convergence (1992–2001)
80 EU15 manufacturing
Social Dialogue in the Years of Nominal Convergence (2001–04)
Impact of Industrial Relations on Economic and Social Convergence (2001–04)
Weakening the Social Dialogue and Build-up to the Crisis (2004–08)
Impact of Industrial Relations on Economic and Social Convergence (2004–08)
The Collapse of Social Dialogue and Social Divergence in Crisis (2008–13)
2.10 Impact of Industrial Relations on Economic and Social Convergence (2008–13)
2.11 Revival of Economic Growth and Social Dialogue in Dependent Capitalism (Post-2013)
B S ech R H
2.12 Impact of Industrial Relations on Economic and Social Convergence (Post-2013)
2.13 Conclusion
OUTCOMES
Wage and Income Inequalities
Gender Inequalities and Work–Life Balance
Health Insurance System
CASE STUDY
Social Dialogue and Social Standards in Foreign-owned Companies
Transnational Cooperation of Trade Unions in Response to International Operations of Employers
Organisations and forums for international cooperation
Forms of cooperation The international cooperation of
Impact on social convergence
Conclusion
Findings
CONCLUSIONS
Full Text
Paper version not known

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.