Sweden: collective bargaining under the industry norm

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Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationCollective bargaining in Europe: towards an endgame
EditorsTorsten Müller, Kurt Vandaele, Jeremy Waddington
Place of PublicationBrussels
PublisherETUI (European Trade Union Institute), Bruxelles
Chapter28
Pages583-603
Number of pages21
Volume3
ISBN (Electronic)978-2-87452-515-5
ISBN (Print)978-2-87452-514-8
Publication statusPublished - 2019 May 20

Bibliographical note

This collection of four volumes charts the development of collective bargaining since the year 2000 in the 28 EU Member States. These four volumes document how the institutions of collective bargaining have been removed, fundamentally altered or markedly narrowed in scope in all 28 EU Member States. However, there are also positive examples to be found. Some collective bargaining systems have proven more resilient than others in maintaining multi-employer bargaining arrangements. Based on the evidence presented in the country-focused chapters, the key policy issue addressed in this book is how the reduction of the importance of collective bargaining as a tool to jointly regulate the employment relationship can be reversed. The struggle to fend off the neoliberal assault on collective bargaining in Europe is moving towards an endgame. The outcome is still open. The country chapters analyse the six dimensions of collective bargaining identifi ed by Clegg (1976: 8–11): extent of bargaining, level of bargaining, depth of bargaining, security of bargaining, scope of agreements and the degree of control of collective agreements. This framework accentuates the analytical similarities between chapters, while also facilitating the identification of different developments in the various Member States. Note: Clegg H. (1976) Trade unionism under collective bargaining, Oxford, Basil Blackwell.

Subject classification (UKÄ)

  • Sociology

Free keywords

  • collective bargaining
  • trade unions
  • collective agreement
  • industrial agreement
  • peak level agreement
  • industrial relations
  • industrial action
  • Europe
  • EU
  • Sweden
  • self-regulation
  • mediation
  • National Office of Mediation
  • LO
  • TCO
  • Saco
  • Confederation of Swedish Enterprise
  • IF Metall
  • blue-collar union
  • white-collar union
  • Industrial Agreement
  • Industry norm
  • wage drift
  • strikes
  • labour conflicts
  • rate of organisation
  • union density
  • employers' associations
  • multi-level bargaining
  • Industriavtalet
  • Sociology
  • wage formation
  • Unionen
  • depth of bargaining
  • wage setting
  • PTK
  • bargaining round
  • Sociologi
  • corona pandemic
  • prolongation

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