Oñati Socio-Legal Series

Social dialogue in defining the European Union economic and social strategy

Laura Teresa Gómez Urquijo — 2024-12-16

Following very significant initiatives, such as the European Pillar of Social Rights and its Action Plan, the Commission presented in 2023 its Communication on Strengthening social dialogue in the European Union: harnessing its full potential for managing fair transitions, together with a Proposal for a Recommendation to the Council on strengthening social dialogue. The present analysis will discuss the progress and limitations of these initiatives, such as the lack of binding nature of the legal instruments used or their effect on policymaking. In this regard, particular attention will be paid to the insertion of social dialogue into European economic and social governance mechanisms. To this end, the study deals with the influence of the economic governance framework on the role and development of social dialogue in the most recent transformations that have taken place since the 2008 crisis to the present. Likewise, the role given to social dialogue will be analysed in the new fiscal rules and economic governance framework recently approved.

Two reforms that restore rights, reduce inequalities, and guarantee the future of pensions without cuts

Cristina Estévez Navarro — 2024-12-16

The simple aim of this article is to publicise the Pension Reforms in Spain that have been the result of the Social Dialogue Agreement in the last few years, to bring this agreement closer to the workers, to the general public, in a pedagogical way, and to try to anticipate any doubts that may arise in order to understand it. We do so by avoiding too many technical terms or language (only when it is essential), because the lack of knowledge of society is the great threat of the Agreement, against the persistent and interested attacks of some lobbies and those whose objective is to weaken the public pension system, until its disappearance or conversion to a mere welfare system, by partial interests.

The era of the “golden workers” and the collective bargaining challenges for the age management in companies

Mariola Serrano Argüeso — 2024-12-16

The ageing of the population is a fact, and also a worldwide social concern. There are two underlying problems in the business world that must be connected: On one hand, the need for older people to remain in the labour market and, on the other hand, the prejudices that exist in the business world in relation to older people. The plans known as generational diversity plans are essential for keeping older people in the labour market but, taking into account previous experiences, these plans should be developed in the field of the collective bargaining, preferably in a mandatory manner, which is not currently the case.

Continuous training in collective bargaining

María de los Reyes Martínez Barroso — 2024-12-16

Collective bargaining should give priority to training aspects in business policy with the aim of increasing the knowledge and professional development of employees, addressing aspects as varied as the ongoing development of skills and professional qualifications, the definition of individual rights to training, individual leave for this purpose, and especially training activities, promoting their quality and the application of subsidies to finance them. However, despite the leading role of collective bargaining in bringing training closer to workers and meeting the needs of employers to improve the skills of the workforce and improve productivity, there are still many gaps in the practice of collective bargaining. However, after the conventional search carried out, it is also possible to locate agreed regulations that give a prominent role to training, based on its consideration as a strategic element that makes it possible to make business competitiveness and productivity compatible with the importance of providing workers with the knowledge and practice appropriate to the professional skills required within the framework of a lifelong learning process, as required by European bodies.

Recent judicial rulings on collective bargaining

Jesús Cruz Villalón — 2024-12-16

This study aims to take a look at the most outstanding interpretative questions of the current regulation of collective bargaining, analysing the criteria that has been given to them by the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court. From this analysis it can be deduced that the rulings handed down on the matter have on some occasions been clarifying, providing the necessary legal certainty, on other occasions it has been a creative jurisprudence that has not failed to spark debate among scientific doctrine and, finally, in some cases, the difficulties in applying such criteria are pointed out, even pointing out on occasion the opportunity to carry out some type of legal intervention to definitively solution to the regulatory gaps detected.

Introduction

Aitziber Mugarra Elorriaga — 2024-12-16

As part of the commitment to promote and disseminate the Decalogue for a renewed model of labour relations, known as the Oñati Declaration, and presented by the Basque Government in 2019, this special issue of the Oñati Socio-Legal Series journal presents five contributions focused on social dialogue and the agreement of labour policies as instruments of change.