Review Essay: Collective Bargaining for the 21st Century

Collective bargaining has served as a cornerstone institution for democracy, a mechanism for increasing workers’ incomes, improving working conditions and reducing inequality, a means for ensuring fair employment relations and a source of workplace innovation. However, the number of workers belonging to trade unions has declined in many countries and global economic integration has tipped bargaining power in favour of employers. This paper reviews recent trends and developments in respect of collective bargaining. It examines the evolution of collective bargaining institutions in different regions of the world. It highlights the manner in which collective bargaining structures have adapted to competitive pressures and the increasing coordination of bargaining practices both within and across borders. In a survey of collective bargaining agendas, the authors note the increasing diversity of issues on the bargaining agenda. They highlight particularly innovative practices in respect of the application of collective agreements to non-standard workers and the role that collective bargaining played in mitigating the effects of the recent economic crisis on workers and enterprises. They argue that the support of public policy is essential to promote and sustain collective bargaining. These developments and the ongoing challenges facing collective bargaining present a number of issues for future research.