Is European social dialogue a process officially recognised by the EU?
The role and procedures of European social dialogue are enshrined in the provisions of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU). According to Article 154 of this Treaty, when the European Commission wishes to launch an initiative in the social policy field, it must consult management and labour, firstly on the possible direction of a European action, and secondly on the content of the envisaged proposal. During this second consultation, the social partners may inform the Commission of their wish to negotiate the content of the proposal themselves. They then have nine months to reach an agreement. In accordance with the Treaty, they may then ask the Commission to convert their agreement into an EU Council directive; or they may alternatively ask to implement the agreement in accordance with the procedures and practices specific to the social partners and the Member States.
In that sense, European social dialogue is a process officially recognised and even promoted by the EU and the Member States.
Who are the stakeholders in European cross-industry social dialogue?
The European cross-industry ‘social partners’ are, on the workers‘ side, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and, on the employers’ side, BusinessEurope (private sector), SME-United (small and medium-sized enterprises) and SGI-Europe (publicly-owned enterprises).
Who are the sectoral players in European social dialogue?
For the sectoral social dialogue, there are ten European trade union federations:
- EAEA: European Entertainment and Media Alliance
- EUROCOP: European Police Confederation
- EFBWW/FETBB: European Federation of Building and Woodworkers
- EFFAT: European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions
- EFJ/FEJ: European Federation of Journalists
- IndustriAll: European Metalworkers' Federation
- EPSU: European Federation of Public Service Unions
- ETF: European Transport Workers' Federation
- ETUCE/CSEE: European Trade Union Committee for Education
- UNI-EUROPA: European Trade Union Federation of Services and Communication.
There are many more sectoral employers' organisations.
Do the texts adopted as part of European social dialogue really help to improve the living and working conditions of European workers?
This depends on the nature of the text adopted. Some agreements negotiated by the cross-industry or sectoral social partners have a real impact on workers' lives, for example on parental leave, fixed-term work, and in some sectors, texts that have concretely improved health and safety at work, and so on. Other types of texts are aimed at trying to influence EU policies (e.g. to create more jobs, or to ensure a just transition, etc.). And some other texts are mere joint declarations of intent.