European Social Dialogue

What is European Social Dialogue?

The European Social Dialogue refers to formal negotiations that take place at the European level between representatives of workers and employers. Cross-industry European Social Dialogue is cross-sectoral, while the European Sectoral Social Dialogue focuses on some 45 specific sectors.

Social dialogue is a key element of the European social model. It enables the social partners to have an input into the design of European social and employment policy, and is an integral part of the institutional community acquis. The European Social Partners will play an increasingly important role in ensuring an effective response to the immense challenges of the climate and digital transitions. As a resource for strengthening European cross-industry and sectoral social dialogue in the years ahead, the ETUI database provides a tool for monitoring and evaluating the role of social dialogue in Europe.

Why focus on European Social Dialogue?

Social dialogue is a key driver of economic and social resilience, competitiveness, fairness and sustainable growth. Knowledge of how social dialogue structures and processes function and are framed by regulation helps workers, unions, company managers and others to participate in forums and resolve economic and social issues; encourage good governance; advance sustainable industrial activity; and support the social partners’ position in European Social Dialogue.

A brief chronology of cross-industry European Social Dialogue and its outcomes

European Social Dialogue database (ESDdb)

The ETUI’s unique European Social Dialogue database (ESDdb) contains detailed information (comprising more than 1,000 references to joint texts adopted by the sectoral social partners in some 45 Sectoral Social Dialogue Committees) dating back to 1978.

This database will be updated annually (it is still under construction). It offers various search options by sector, theme, keyword, date, etc. In most cases, it provides direct access to the texts adopted by the sectoral social partners.

Video on the ETUI European Social Dialogue database

Interprofessional or cross-sectoral European Social Dialogue

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) represents workers in European Social Dialogue at the European level in the Social Dialogue Committee which meets three times a year. The European social partners engage in social dialogue at cross-sectoral and sectoral levels through discussions, consultations, negotiations and joint actions.

The involvement of the social partners at the European level is organised around three different types of activities:

  • The tripartite consultation comprises the exchanges between the social partners and the European public authorities.
  • The consultation of the social partners covers the activities of the consultative committees and official consultations in the spirit of Article 153 of the (Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)) - for a complete overview of all consultations so far launched by the European Commission, click here.

Key outcomes of the Interprofessional European Social Dialogue framework agreements, frameworks of actions and the multi-annual work programmes:

European Sectoral Social Dialogue

European sectoral social dialogue is a social dialogue that takes place at the branch level between the European trade union and employer organisations of a specific sector of the economy. The main advantage of EU sectoral social dialogue is its ability to address specific aspects of sectoral concern and to provide a proper forum for discussion with the actors on the ground of many issues linked to employment, working conditions, vocational training, industrial change, the knowledge society, demographic patterns, enlargement and globalisation.

European sectoral social dialogue is now a well-established process, since its 30-year-old formal and informal structures were reformed on the basis of the European Commission Decision in May 1998. This Decision constitutes the foundation for sectoral social dialogue committees promoting dialogue between the social partners in sectors at European level.

There are currently some 40 sectoral social dialogue committees, which have produced a wide range of joint texts and agreements. A characteristic of the sectoral social dialogue at European level is the diversity of tools used to formalise commitments made by the social partners. The list includes opinions and common positions, declarations, guidelines and codes of conduct, charters, and also framework agreements.

In 2010, the EU Commission published a staff working document where it took stock of the main achievements of the European sectoral social dialogue and reviewed the functioning of the European sectoral social dialogue committees.

Detailed information about the sectoral social dialogue, such as overviews of specific sectors and outcomes of the sectoral social dialogues, can be found here

Regulation

The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) contains two key articles concerning European Social Dialogue:

Other regulation and positions

Other regulatory and position materials include:

ETUI publications on European Social Dialogue

Frequently Asked Questions

You can view the most often-asked questions - and responses - about European Social Dialogue in this FAQ.

Other resources: European Social Dialogue multi-annual work programmes and other social dialogue websites

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