The quality of industrial relations and the Lisbon strategy

Industrial relations and the Lisbon reform agenda are interwoven. The Lisbon Strategy has entered the agenda of the social partners at all levels: European, national, in sectors and in companies. The use of instruments — law, collective agreements with and without binding effects, guidelines and benchmarking — varies and generally there is a tendency to combine hard and soft instruments, and less binding regulation, allowing more flexibility in implementation under diverse conditions. Differences in industrial relation regimes across Member States are visible in employment outcomes, the capacities of industrial relations actors and the contribution of the social dialogue process. In addition to differences in capacities, however, the willingness of unions and employers’ association to ‘buy into’ the dialogue process and the Lisbon agenda may be the overriding factor explaining a successful contribution.