Dublin workshop gathers unions to strengthen collective bargaining across Europe

At least three million workers were stripped of the benefits of collective bargaining between 2000 and 2018 largely due to EU-mandated austerity policies, as the ETUC has highlighted. The EU has since tried to turn this tide, also through the EU Minimum Wage Directive and so-called National Action Plans. In the next few months, governments will have to propose such plans to turn the Directive’s goal of 80 per cent collective bargaining coverage into reality.

To support this effort, UNI Europa held a workshop in Dublin, Ireland, on 9-10 October, bringing together over 20 trade union representatives from Ireland, Croatia and Malta.

Participants discussed leveraging the Directive and the National Action Plans to strengthen their position and tackle the challenges trade unions face in these countries through cross-border collaboration.

This event is part of UNI Europa’s ongoing effort to build capacity and strengthen collective bargaining within the services sector. The workshop provided an opportunity for participants to share experiences, strategies, and tools to effectively use the Minimum Wage Directive to advance workers’ interests in countries with strong single-employer bargaining systems.