Unions’ and employers’ organisations are broadly considered as significant actors in the regulation of labour markets in Europe. And since its formal launch in 1997, the European Employment Strategy has insisted on their active participation in the implementation of the guidelines within Member States. From an industrial relations point of view, such participation seems natural, and even desirable. However, bipartite and tripartite processes for employment and the nature of current labour market change are not without challenges for unions and employers’ associations. Adopting a slightly provocative position, this article questions the ambivalences of concertation in the search for full employment.
Les organisations syndicales et patronales sont généralement considérées comme des acteurs significatifs dans la régulation du marché du travail en Europe. Depuis son lancement formel en 1997, la Stratégie Européenne pour l'Emploi a d'ailleurs insisté sur leur participation active dans la mise en oeuvre des lignes directrices au sein des Etats membres. Du point de vue des relations industrielles, une telle participation semble naturelle et, měme plus, souhaitable. Pourtant, les processus de négociation et de concertation pour l'emploi ainsi que la nature des changements induits dans le marché du travail s'accompagnent d'enjeux et de risques nouveaux. Adoptant une posture quelque peu provocatrice, cet article souhaite souligner les ambivalences de la concertation en vue du plein emploi.
Gewerkschaften und Arbeitgeberorganisationen werden im Allgemeinen als wichtige Akteure bei der Regulierung der Arbeitsmärkte in Europa angesehen. Und seit der formalen Einführung der Europäischen Beschäftigungsstrategie im Jahr 1997 wird in diesem Rahmen ihre aktive Teilnahme an der Umsetzung der Leitlinien in den Mitgliedstaaten betont. Aus der Perspektive der industriellen Beziehungen erscheint eine derartige Beteiligung natürlich und sogar wünschenswert. Die bi- und trilateralen Prozesse zur Beschäftigungsförderung und das Wesen der derzeitigen Veränderungen am Arbeitsmarkt stellen die Gewerkschaften und die Arbeitgeberorganisationen jedoch vor neue Herausforderungen. Ein wenig provozierend unterstreicht dieser Artikel die Ambivalenzen der Konzertierung im Hinblick auf die Schaffung der Vollbeschäftigung.
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