Industrial Relations in Europe 2012 - European Commission - Europa

2010, collective bargaining coverage varies considerably across the EU Member States over
all sectors.
Bargaining coverage remained stable for the EU as a whole during the decade preceding the
crisis. The indicator dropped from about 68% at the end of the 1990s to approximately 66% in
the years 2007-2009. How far this is due to the impact of the crisis cannot yet be confirmed
due to lack of recent data. However, the relative stability of bargaining coverage at EU level
masks significant changes in some Member States. In Portugal but also in Ireland, Cyprus or
Bulgaria bargaining coverage fell substantially. There are also marked differences between
the EU-15 and CEE countries. The new Member States, with the exception of Slovenia and
Romania, have a bargaining coverage below the EU average. Slovenia is the only CEEC
among the 10 Member States where at least 80% of employees are covered by collective
bargaining.
Bargaining coverage is determined by several factors, among which the density of employers'
organisations plays the most significant role 2 . While trade union density is important at
sectoral level, the effective implementation of collective agreements will be determined
principally by the number of employers who recognise the agreements. Chart 1.2 shows the
association between bargaining coverage and the density of trade unions and employers'
organisations in the EU. While trade union density is also associated with the degree of
bargaining coverage, the link is much weaker. As can be seen from the chart, in all countries
with the exception of Malta and Cyprus trade union density is lower than bargaining
coverage. In some countries, particularly in France, Spain and the Netherlands, these
differences are striking. In these countries, bargaining coverage exceeds not only trade union
density, but also the density of employers' organisations. This is due to the extension of
collective agreements, either voluntarily or provided by legal regulations.
Chart 1.2: Bargaining coverage, union and employer density, 2007/09
Source: J. Visser, ICTWSS database 3.0, 2011.
Some 2008 data was revised. Newer data for 2009 on employer density and showing significant
changes in relation to 2008 is available only for Slovenia, where density decreased from 70% to 55%.
For the other countries, data is either unavailable or show no differences (AT, BE, CZ) or marginal
differences (EE, SE) and was therefore not used. Bargaining coverage remains the same as in the 2010
report because of lack of new data.
2 See Industrial Relations in Europe 2008 and 2010
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