July, 2007

June 2007

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Comment

After over 6 years of an employment law that promotes collective bargaining, the actual percentage of private sector workers covered by collective agreements is 9%. In the public sector it is 62%. There are several reasons for this result including strong growth in private sector employment in many new types of economic activity and the fact that only union members are in collective agreements. But union membership has been growing even in the private sector. The main reasons for low collective bargaining density lie elsewhere. Employers continue to resist collective bargaining, the transaction costs for unions engaged in enterprise bargaining are very high, and the law only weakly promotes collective bargaining. The law is strong on intentions and good faith rules – but low on structural and institutional support for collective bargaining.