Abstract

What does the quality of social dialogue in the Central and European countries depend upon? There are three sets of factors which influence the quality of social dialogue, in other words, the social consultation regarding relations between employers and employees. The states in this legion share the common legacy of the years of socialism. They share the difficult experience of economic and political transformation. They have also recently joined the European Union. The other factors are the conditions of an economy which is undergoing globalisation and the challenges of competitiveness on the common market that are related to the European Integration. It is the last circumstances which seem to hinder social dialogue the most. They result in a situation where, to a large degree, it becomes a tool used to improve the competitiveness of the national economy and to liberalise the regulations pertaining to relations between employers and employees. Such assumptions concerning the operations of the institutions in question place the trade unions in a difficult situation. In a way which is obvious, this makes the building of solid institutions of social dialogue in the new EU member countries difficult.