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Industrial relations and social dialogue

Industrial relations and social dialogue is one of Eurofound's main operational activities for its 2025–2028 programming period. Building on the past 50 years of research, Eurofound continues to function as a centre of expertise for monitoring and analysing developments in industrial relations and social dialogue at European and national levels and promoting dialogue between management and labour.

Eurofound’s research priorities are shaped by the opportunities and challenges arising from four mega-drivers: demographic change, climate change, technological change and re-globalisation. In the area of industrial relations and social dialogue, the Agency also continues to monitor, report and analyse developments in this area at sector and, as far as feasible, company levels. 

This research activity responds to the need to support social dialogue and provide comparative data on national institutional settings and developments as well as European-level developments.

Topic

Recent updates

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National minimum wages, 2025

Eurofound publishes gross and nominal statutory minimum wages applicable in EU countries that have a statutory minimum wage.

Data Item

Eurofound research 2025

During 2025, Eurofound’s continues its regular reporting and monitoring of developments in industrial relations and social dialogue. Work continues on sectoral representativeness studies, at the request of the European Commission. Research also builds on the knowledge around the degree and form of the social partners’ involvement in national tripartite policymaking in the context of the European Semester.

Drawing on the expertise of the Network of Eurofound Correspondents, regular updating of the EU PolicyWatch database offers examples of collective agreements, company cases and other initiatives, and captures how national governments involve the social partners in policymaking.

In 2025, Eurofound begins preparation for the 2026 edition of the Tripartite Exchange Seminar, in cooperation with the relevant partners.

Topics of research include:

  • Minimum wages: Looking at how Member States have adapted their systems following the transposition of the Directive on adequate minimum wages in the European Union, including further experiences with pay transparency measures and an annual review of minimum wages
  • Working time: Monitoring developments, including regulation and outcomes
  • Involvement of the social partners: Social partners’ involvement in the governance of national public employment services and social security institutions in the EU
  • Collective bargaining: How collective bargaining can be promoted, the obstacles that could be removed, and the range of topics that are addressed in collective agreements
  • Caring for care services: Focusing on industrial relations aspects such as representation, collective bargaining and social dialogue in the sector
  • Representativeness studies: Various sectors
  • National reporting on industrial relations, social dialogue and working life
  • Working life country profiles update

What our experts say

...

We are there to support the dialogue between management and labour. And I think the data we draw together and the research we do is important, if it helps the actors themselves, to function better… A vibrant social dialogue is part of what you might call a social market economy, which is what the European Union is aiming to achieve.

Listen to our podcasts on issues around industrial relations and social dialogue

Eurofound Talks - A podcast series

 

Infographic: Industrial relations and social dialogue in the EU

Key challenges for industrial relations systems are changes in society, labour markets and the organisation of work.

Fewer than 1 in 3 EU workplaces with 10+ workers has some form of official employee representation.

See full infographic

Linking in with EU priorities

2025 marks the first year of the five-year period of the EU policy and legislative cycle for 2025–2029. The research and monitoring carried out in the area of industrial relations and social dialogue is relevant for a range of EU initiatives, such as:

  • the Council Recommendation and the Communication on strengthening social dialogue in the European Union
  • the implementation of the Directive on adequate minimum wages
  • the future of the European Works Councils
  • the Council Recommendation on access to social protection for workers and the self-employed
  • the involvement of the social partners in the European Semester and the recovery and resilience plans
  • the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan

Key outputs

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Living and working in Europe 2023

The post-pandemic recovery of Europe continued in 2023, with strong job creation despite subdued economic growth, against a background of rising geopolitical tension. Eurofound’s research over the year brought to...

2 Mai 2024
Publication
Annual report
Publications results (542)

Mindestlöhne im Jahr 2024: Jährlicher Bericht

This 2024 annual review of minimum wages provides a synopsis of minimum wage setting during 2023 in the EU27 and Norway. It reports in detail on the processes and outcomes of setting the minimum wage rates for 2024 and beyond. It investigates the extent to which minimum wage earners were affected by

26 June 2024
Publication
Research report
Minimum wage
Pay and income
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations

Living and working in Europe 2023

The post-pandemic recovery of Europe continued in 2023, with strong job creation despite subdued economic growth, against a background of rising geopolitical tension. Eurofound’s research over the year brought to light evidence on the key issues shaping the daily lives and work of Europeans.

02 May 2024
Publication
Annual report
Living and working in Europe
Working conditions and sustainable work
Employment and labour markets
Living conditions and quality of life
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Sozialpolitische Governance der Aufbau- und Resilienzfazilität: Beteiligung der nationalen Sozialpartner

Three years after the adoption of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), this report reviews the quality of the social partners’ involvement in 2023 in the ongoing implementation of reforms and investments funded by that initiative. It also examines the quality of their involvement in the prepa

26 February 2024
Publication
Research report
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Social dialogue
Social partners
Industrial relations
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Minimum wages for low-paid workers in collective agreements

In this pilot project, Eurofound successfully established the feasibility of, and piloted, an EU-wide database of minimum pay rates contained in collective agreements related to low-paid workers. A conceptual and measurement framework was devised, a total of 692 collective agreements – related to 24

26 January 2024
Publication
Research report
Minimum wage
Pay and income
Collective bargaining
Agreements
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Representativeness of the European social partner organisations: Furniture sector

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the furniture sector.

08 December 2023
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social dialogue
Social partners
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations

Messung der wesentlichen Dimensionen von Arbeitsbeziehungen und industrieller Demokratie (Aktualisierung 2023)

Previous Eurofound research developed three complementary tools to examine the dynamics of industrial relations and compare how national industrial relations systems are faring in terms of quality and change over time.

05 December 2023
Publication
Research report
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations
Social partners
Employee representation
Collective bargaining
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Mindestlöhne: Nichteinhaltung von Vorschriften und Durchsetzung in den EU-Mitgliedstaaten – ein vergleichender Bericht

In the EU, non-compliance with statutory or negotiated minimum wages averages 6.93% or 1.3%, depending on the statistics used. The lowest national estimate is 0.01% in Belgium and the highest is 11.59% in Hungary.

27 November 2023
Publication
Research report
Minimum wage
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations

Representativeness of the European social partner organisations: Woodworking sector

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the woodworking sector.

21 November 2023
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social dialogue
Social partners
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations

Representativeness of the social partners in European cross-industry social dialogue

This study provides information to allow for an assessment of the representativeness of the national and supranational social partners at cross-industry level in the EU.

09 November 2023
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social dialogue
Social partners
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations

Representativeness of the European social partner organisations: Professional football sector

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the professional football sector.

26 October 2023
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social dialogue
Social partners
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations
Online resources results (1807)

Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions holds congress

The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), the largest employee confederation in Norway, held its four-yearly congress on 10-16 May 1997. The most important issues were the question of continuing with the "Solidarity Alternative", and the adoption of the Action Programme for the period 1997

27 Mai 1997
Article
Social partners
Social dialogue
Pay and income
Working time
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Swedish employers urged to negotiate on the reduction of working time

"Negotiate a reduction of working time - or else public opinion will force through legislation". That was the message in an article written jointly by Prime MinisterGöran Persson and the chair of the Swedish Metal Workers' Union, Göran Johnsson, and published in the evening paper /Aftonbladet/ on 28

27 Mai 1997
Article
Working time
Collective bargaining
Labour law
Industrial relations
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Banking sector in conflict over statutory working week

In France, regulation of the working week is based on a piece of legislation passed in 1936, which laid down a work schedule spread over five days. Decrees on the application of this law made special provision, in each sector, for the way in which these hours would be organised. The one concerning

27 April 1997
Article
Working time
Industrial action
Labour law
Collective bargaining
Working conditions
Industrial relations
Labour and social regulation
Working conditions and sustainable work
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Participation and collective bargaining in Italian enterprises

During the 1990s, the tendencies within Italian enterprises towards a greater participation of workers and their representatives have become more pronounced. This has applied to direct, economic/financial and institutional participation, and here we review recent developments, focusing on the second

27 April 1997
Article
Participation at work
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Labour cost reductions pose new challenges to industrial relations in banking

Over the past few months, the Governor of the Bank of Italy, Antonio Fazio, and the Abi banking employers' association have urged the Government to start negotiations with employers' associations and trade unions in order to deal with the problems linked to the low profitability of the Italian

27 April 1997
Article
Collective bargaining
Restructuring
Labour market policies
Work organisation
Working conditions
Industrial relations
Working conditions and sustainable work
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Controversy surrounds social security financing

In the Netherlands, there has been a long struggle over how responsibilities for administering social security should be divided between social partners and the government. The Dutch social security administration has been reorganised - most recently from March 1997 - under pressure of criticism

27 April 1997
Article
Social protection
Social partners
Industrial relations
Social policies
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Bargaining round extends voluntary early retirement scheme

On 6 April 1997, the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) and the Confederation of Norwegian Business and Industry (NHO) agreed on a proposal for an agreement which they could recommend to their members in this year's bargaining round. LO won acceptance for its demands on the extension of

27 April 1997
Article
Collective bargaining
Social dialogue
Pay and income
Retirement
Industrial relations
Social policies
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Collective bargaining and strikes in the first quarter of 1997

The incidence of collective bargaining across a variety of sectors in Portugal has tended slightly to decrease in the first quarter of 1997. However, at the same time, the number of strikes has been increasing - often to enforce reductions in working time

27 April 1997
Article
Industrial action
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

The industrial relations consequences of the "new" Labour Government.

From 1979, the economic policy of successive Conservative Governments was based on a fundamental belief in the effectiveness of free markets. In the case of the labour market, there was an emphasis on deregulation and the importance of flexibility in creating employment and economic growth. The

27 April 1997
Article
Industrial relations
Labour market policies
Minimum wage
Pay and income
Employee representation
Employment and labour markets
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Recent trends in health and safety at work

Health and safety at work has arisen as a very serious matter of social concern over recent years and has become a focus of interest for both the state and the social institutions concerned. The magnitude and complexity of the problem and the need to find direct and effective solutions have induced

27 März 1997
Article
Health and well-being
Social partners
Labour law
Industrial relations
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Blogs results (22)
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How to ensure adequate minimum wages in an age of inflation

Minimum wages have risen significantly in 2022, as the EU Member States leave behind the cautious mood of the pandemic. However, rising inflation is eating up these wage increases, and only flexibility in the regular minimum wage setting processes may avoid generalised losses in purchasing power amo

15 Juni 2022
Carlos Vacas‑Soriano
Blog
Pay and income
Minimum wage
Agreements
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations
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Resumed EU Semester calls for better involvement of the social partners in implementing recovery and resilience plans

With the arrival of the month of May, the 2022 European Semester Spring Package is anticipated soon. After a transformative year in 2021, which saw the launch of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) under NextGenerationEU, the European Semester cycle has resumed its role as the reference frame

3 Mai 2022
Ricardo Rodriguez Contreras
Blog
Social partners
European Pillar of Social Rights
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Gender pay transparency: Advancing the cause through a truly European proposal

With its proposed directive on gender pay transparency, the European Commission has significantly bolstered the set of tools for delivering its objectives compared to those presented in its 2014 Recommendation. The proposed portfolio of measures addresses many shortcomings of the instruments that na

18 Juni 2021
Christine Aumayr-Pintar
Blog
Pay and income
Working conditions and sustainable work
Gender equality
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Minimum wages rise again, but the pandemic puts a brake on their growth

Decision-makers approached minimum wage setting for 2021 cautiously due to the economic uncertainty caused by the pandemic. Despite this, nominal statutory minimum wages rose in most Member States and the UK, although at lower rates than in recent years.

8 Juni 2021
Carlos Vacas‑Soriano
Blog
Social dialogue
Pay and income
Working poor
Minimum wage
European Pillar of Social Rights
Labour market policies
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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New impetus to collective bargaining: Insights from the ECS

In the context of the ongoing trend of a fall in collective bargaining coverage, and recent calls at EU level to promote collective bargaining coverage as an instrument to support fair and decent wages, new data from Eurofound’s fourth European Company Survey (ECS) show that two-thirds of workers (i

28 Oktober 2020
Christine Aumayr-Pintar
Blog
Social dialogue
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations
Minimum wage
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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What Europe can learn from living-wage campaigns

The coronavirus disease (Covid-19) is having drastic consequences for the world of work. In most European countries workers who are not delivering essential ‘frontline’ services are being asked to stay home. Unfortunately many are out of work, while many of those who are not are minimum-wage and low

1 April 2020
John Hurley
Blog
COVID-19
Working poor
Working conditions and sustainable work
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations
Minimum wage
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Fears and hopes around future minimum wages

As one of their ‘100 days in office’ initiatives, the new European Commission intends to propose an initiative for an EU minimum wage. The aim is that by 2024 every worker in the EU should earn a fair and adequate wage, no matter where they live.

15 Januar 2020
Christine Aumayr-Pintar
Blog
Pay and income
Industrial relations
Minimum wage
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Restructuring: Do unions still matter?

Trade unions in many EU Member States face the issue of declining membership. This is a fundamental challenge for organised labour, but it is premature to speak about the redundancy unions: when it comes to important decisions affecting the workplace, restructuring being one, trade unions remain a p

20 November 2019
Sara Riso
Blog
Restructuring
Working conditions
Employee representation
Industrial relations
Employment and labour markets
Working conditions and sustainable work
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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100 years of 8-hour working days

The International Labour Organization (ILO) met for the first time 100 years ago, and right at the top of the agenda for discussion for this new specialised UN agency was the 8-hour working day. This discussion subsequently resulted in the Hours of Work (Industry) Convention, which stated that ‘The

12 November 2019
Nils Brandsma
Blog
Working time
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Member States still getting to grips with the single labour market

The European Platform Tackling Undeclared Work last year documented the case of a Dutch temporary work agency that hired workers of various nationalities to work for a construction company in Belgium. The wages were suspiciously low, and the Belgian Labour Inspectorate believed that EU law guarantee

17 Juli 2019
Helen Burke
Blog
Posted workers
Working conditions and sustainable work
Working conditions
Undeclared work
Fraudulent work
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations
Upcoming publications results (10)

Representativeness study: Agriculture

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the agriculture sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to participate, be consulted and have the potential to

March 2026
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social partners
Social dialogue
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Representativeness study: Maritime transport

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the agriculture sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to participate, be consulted and have the potential to

December 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social partners
Social dialogue
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Representativeness study: Footwear

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the agriculture sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to participate, be consulted and have the potential to

November 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social partners
Social dialogue
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Representativeness study: Ports

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the agriculture sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to participate, be consulted and have the potential to

November 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social partners
Social dialogue
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Representativeness study: Tanning and leather

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the agriculture sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to participate, be consulted and have the potential to

October 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social partners
Social dialogue
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Collective bargaining beyond pay: An analysis of collective agreements in selected low-paid sectors

This report analyses and compares the content of 98 collective agreements across three low-wage sectors in 12 EU Member States. The project builds on Eurofound’s database of collective agreements related to low-paid workers, collected for the Agency’s pilot project on minimum wages.

October 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Representativeness of the European social partner organisations: Graphical sector

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the graphical industry. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation

September 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social dialogue
Social partners
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations

Representativeness study: Temporary Agency Work

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the agriculture sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to participate, be consulted and have the potential to

August 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Representativeness
Social partners
Social dialogue
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Minimum wages in 2025: Annual review

The 2025 annual review of minimum wages provides a synopsis of minimum wage setting across the EU27 and Norway during 2024. It reports in detail on the processes and outcomes of setting the minimum wage rates for 2025 and beyond. The report also summarises how Member States have amended their minimu

August 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Minimum wage
Pay and income
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Impact of national minimum wages on collective bargaining and wages of low-paid groups

This research report analyses how changes to national minimum wages impact collectively agreed wages and actual wages for selected low-paid jobs and sectors. The methodology combines quantitative (econometric) and qualitative analyses. The quantitative analysis uses Eurofound’s database of collectiv

June 2025
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Minimum wage
Collective bargaining
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Data results (11)

National minimum wages, 2024

Eurofound publishes gross and nominal statutory minimum wages applicable in EU countries that have a statutory minimum wage.

25 Januar 2024
Quelle:
Minimum wages
Reference period:
2023

Disclaimer

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