Conflicting Contexts
The Implementation of European Works Council in Sweden

Uppsula Studies in Economic History, No. 97

By Nathaniel Mehr
September 2009
Uppsala University Press
Distributed by
ISBN: 9789155474737
153 pages, Illustrated
$52.50 Paper Original

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Although the European Union is described as a threat to the political manoeuverability of the member states, the EU often allows an adaptation of its legislation to suit national rules and practices. One example of how EU-level regulations and national legislation and tradition interplay is the implementation of the European directive on the establishment of European Works Councils (EWCs).

Research on EWCs has shown that national employee participation institutions in the EU member states have been important for shaping the development of these information and consultation forums. This book focuses on the role of the national system of employee participation for the implementation of EWCs in Sweden. Through an illustration of how national institutions and ideas shaped the views and reasoning of the groups and organizations that were involved in the implementation process it complements previous studies of the establishment of EWCs. The results of the study show that the national context had an impact on the implementation of EWCs in Swedish, but also that other factors, such as company characteristics, were important for the actions taken by the groups and organizations involved in this process.

 

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