Ten years of enlargement and the forces of labour in Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract

This article introduces the individual contributions to this issue, which takes stock of the results of the first decade of eastern enlargement of the EU. Combining the insights of the study of industrial relations and social movement theory, the analysis focuses on what Central and Eastern European trade unions have done to benefit from new opportunities and mitigate new risks in good times and bad. The article proposes that while during the first decade after enlargement the hollowing and backsliding of industrial democracy made it difficult for organized workers to make their voices heard via collective bargaining, there have been tectonic shifts in labour’s typical voices of discontent. Aggrieved employees have protested less through strikes at the workplace in their capacity as workers empowered by labour’s collective rights and in alliance with fellow workers. Instead, the repertoire of contention has been dominated by demonstrations in the public space by public sector employees, who have relied on their citizenship rights shared with fellow citizens and have sought the support of civil society organizations.