Labor Unions and the New European Governance

The white paper on European governance of 2001 advocated the participation of civil society in devising and implementing European policies as a matter of principle. Thus, it encouraged the various institutions to set up a civil dialogue along the lines of the social dialogue, as if the borders between the two were definite and referred to distinct organizations. Based on the conceptions and experiences of the civil dialogue discussed in the European Economic and Social Committee and the Directorate General for Employment, Social Affairs, and Equal Opportunities, this paper shows how labor unionists had to redefine the nature of the interests they represent and the way they defend them at the European level. Contrary to analyses that see worker participation as weakening labor unions and hence as mere interest groups among others with no more legitimacy or prerogatives, a survey of the practices of groups representing social interests show that under some conditions, such participation can be an asset for labor unions concerned with promoting a less institutional idea of unionism and its means of intervention at the European level.