Mergi la conţinutul principal
industrial_action.jpg

Industrial action

Industrial action is one of the fundamental means available to workers and their organisations to solve labour disputes and promote their economic and social interests. It can take many forms, from the complete withdrawal of labour for an indefinite period to more restricted forms of collective action in which there is no cessation of work. The right to strike is explicitly recognised in the constitutions and/or laws of many countries. At EU level, the right to strike is enshrined in Article 28 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. The right to collective action by the social partners is also included in the European Pillar of Social Rights.  Eurofound is currently exploring the feasibility of an industrial action monitor. 

Topic

Eurofound research

Eurofound has analysed data collected in 2018–2019 during the piloting of its Industrial Action Monitor (IAM) database. Using cluster analysis, the research classified industrial action in Europe into five categories: 

  • national disputes of interest and rights, sometimes involving different forms of employment
  • extended disputes about collective pay agreements
  • localised disputes about employment problems, working time and restructuring, with short work stoppages
  • localised disputes about workers’ rights and grievances over company policies
  • disputes concerning public policies

Recent updates

ef22048_card_cover.png

This publication consists of individual country reports on working life during 2021 for 28 countries – the 27 EU Member States and Norway. The country reports summarise evidence on the...

19 Mai 2022
Publication
Other
ef21026_card_cover.png

În ultimii ani, cu excepția câtorva creșteri intermitente, a existat în general o scădere a acțiunilor sindicale în statele membre. În timpul pandemiei de COVID-19, această tendință a continuat, iar...

7 Februarie 2022
Publication
Research report

Key outputs

ef21026_card_cover.png

In recent years, apart from some intermittent spikes, there has been a general decrease in industrial action across the EU Member States. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this trend has continued...

7 Februarie 2022
Publication
Research report
ef21019.png

Relative calm on the industrial action front in 2020

Despite the economic turmoil that led to large-scale restructuring in many EU Member States and changes in working conditions for many occupational groups, 2020 seems to have been a quiet...

Article
Publications results (18)

This publication consists of individual country reports on working life during 2021 for 28 countries – the 27 EU Member States and Norway. The country reports summarise evidence on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on working life based on national research and survey results during 2021. They

19 May 2022

În ultimii ani, cu excepția câtorva creșteri intermitente, a existat în general o scădere a acțiunilor sindicale în statele membre. În timpul pandemiei de COVID-19, această tendință a continuat, iar în mod surprinzător, cele mai semnificative conflicte de muncă au avut loc în sectorul sănătății

07 February 2022

This report – the latest in an annual series – describes the main developments in industrial relations and the regulations affecting working conditions at EU level and in the EU Member States and Norway during 2018. Based on data from the Network of Eurofound Correspondents, it presents information

02 October 2019

Annual review of working life 2017 is part of a series of annual reviews published by Eurofound and provides an overview of the latest developments in industrial relations and working conditions across the EU and Norway. The annual review collates information based on reports from Eurofound’s

22 October 2018

Teachers across Europe have been protesting about their working conditions. Pay levels and pay inequalities, working time and workload, recruitment procedures and staffing at schools have been the main focus of social dialogue and collective action. Several of the reported cases are set in the

09 January 2017

Smartphone car service Uber, a successful company example of the sharing economy, has spread to many EU Member States in recent years. However, many employers and unions are concerned about its challenge to fair competition for other businesses in the sector and about the erosion of working

25 January 2016

Air transport has been in the news in recent months as strikes and difficulties in social dialogue across the European Union have strained relations between the sector’s unions and companies. Disputes in the different countries have revolved around pay and working conditions, restructuring and

09 December 2015

Strike activity across the EU dropped in 2014 following a crisis-related peak in 2010. However, evidence from EurWORK correspondents suggests that the more highly unionised public sector has been a focus of industrial action recently. In general, strikes have been triggered by pay freezes and cuts

24 November 2015

Collective bargaining systems in the EU have undergone a steady change since the end of the 1990s. But as businesses across Europe struggle to respond to intensifying global competition, pressure from employers for greater flexibility in collective bargaining is increasing, especially since the 2008

04 November 2015

This article presents some of the key developments and research findings on aspects of dispute resolution in the EU between the first and third quarters of 2014. Changes in the EU Member States’ collective and individual dispute resolution mechanisms are the main focus. The section on 'Extensions of

18 February 2015

Online resources results (504)

Poland: Latest working life developments – Q3 2016

A protest in the public healthcare system, discontent in the education sector, significant legislative initiatives and support for a ban on Sunday shop opening are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Poland in the

Norway: Biannual sectoral collective bargaining round concluded

With most national agreements reached without industrial action, this article reports on the outcomes of the biannual sectoral bargaining round in Norway.

Romania: Protests over proposed law on wage-setting in the public sector

A new emergency bill on public sector employees’ wage-setting was adopted on 8 June 2016, despite opposition and protest from trade unions.

Poland: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Conflicts in the public sector, improved minimum wages, union representation for Ukrainian migrant workers and concerns about the consequences of Brexit for Polish workers in the UK are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working

Sweden: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Competition between unions, the launch of a substitute for collective agreements, laws on asylum seekers’ residence permits, employers’ responsibility for sick pay, and a pilots’ strike are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working

Portugal: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

The re-introduction of four holidays and the 35-hour week in the public sector; as well as job precariousness and unemployment, are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Portugal in the first quarter of 2016.

Greece: Widespread protests at proposed social security and tax reforms

There has been widespread opposition, including general strikes and mass demonstrations, to proposed reforms to the social security and taxation system. The reforms, unveiled in January 2016, were prompted by the need to comply with the terms of the most recent financial assistance programme

Cyprus: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Presidential intervention to prevent a doctors’ strike, a dispute about renewal of collective agreements for airport ground staff and social outcry over women’s exclusion from the National Guard are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments

France: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Adoption of the new labour code, the failure of collective bargaining on unemployment schemes and a study on the negative impact of night work are among the main points of interest of this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in France in the second quarter

Netherlands: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Pensions and flexible work, more rights for works councils and the latest data on industrial action and collective agreements are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in the Netherlands in the second quarter of 2016.


Disclaimer

When freely submitting your request, you are consenting Eurofound in handling your personal data to reply to you. Your request will be handled in accordance with the provisions of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data. More information, please read the Data Protection Notice.