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Trade unions and the defence of the European social model
Author(s) -
Waddington Jeremy
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
industrial relations journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.525
H-Index - 3
eISSN - 1468-2338
pISSN - 0019-8692
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-2338.2005.00380.x
Subject(s) - contradiction , european union , point (geometry) , international trade , european social model , trade union , european integration , political science , economics , political economy , philosophy , geometry , mathematics , epistemology
Taking as its point of departure the challenges faced by the European social model and the role of trade unions therein, this article identifies aspects of the defensive orientation adopted by trade unionists in Europe and points to an emerging contradiction between the support of trade unionists for European integration and the increasingly neoliberal character of policies intended to ‘modernise’ the European economy. Examination of trade union policy innovations intended to reverse recent declines in membership and influence reveals the breadth of such policies, but also demonstrates that to date they have proved insufficient to reverse decline.