Final questionnaire for the EIRO CAR on Union
strategies to recruit new groups of workers
[Correspondent:] Please change the title to: ‘<Country>: Union strategies to recruit new groups
of workers.
[Correspondent:] Length and format
The responses of the national centres should be no longer than 2,500 words.
Important: Please use this EIRO template questionnaire to respond, filling in the answer to
each question underneath that question. Please also be reminded to fill in the metadata.
Please retain all headings in the document. Do not change the text of the headings. You may add
sub-headings if necessary. Please retain any text appearing in blue, which uses the ‘Comment
Text’ paragraph style, as this will be automatically removed prior to publication. All other text
(not in headings or in comments) will be retained and published online, so please ensure that it is
suitable for publication.
If you have any queries on administrative issues (deadlines, submission etc), please contact
Catherine Cerf (cce@eurofound.europa.eu) in the first instance. If you have any queries on the
content of the information requested, please contact Roberto Pedersini
(eiro.italia@fondazioneseveso.it) who is coordinating the study or Isabella Biletta
(isabella.biletta@eurofound.europa.eu) research manager in charge of the study at Eurofound.
[Correspondent:] Timing
The deadline for the submission of national contributions is 11 November 2008.
In order to fill in this questionnaire it is absolutely necessary to carefully read the
accompanying guidelines (i.e. briefing note).
Abstract – Required
[Correspondent:] Please provide an abstract of maximum 100 words.
1. Trade union membership and density rates: data and research
[Correspondent:] This first section is meant to provide a background for the report.
1.1. Please provide trade union membership and union density rates since
1990 (1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2007).
1.2. Please indicate the presence and content of recent studies (since 2000)
on trade union membership of particular groups of workers, such as
women, young people, migrants, white-collar workers, service workers,
workers with ‘atypical’ contractual arrangements, and/or other groups of
workers which are relatively less represented in trade union membership in
your country.
[Correspondent:] If many studies are available, you should devote special attention to those
which try to identify the structural variables (such as the presence/lack of trade union rights, the
nature of employer attitudes and practices, and so on) and motivational elements (like low/high
interest and the perceived added-value of trade union representation on the part of potential
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members, fear that union membership may result in disadvantages in career developments, and so
on) which influence the choice of joining/not joining the unions
Total number of words for this section: 400
2. Trade union membership: national debates
[Correspondent:] This section should provide an overview of the national debates on recent
developments and future prospects of trade union representation.
2.1
Please indicate whether in your country there are on-going national
debates on trade union representation and membership and their recent
developments. In particular, you should indicate whether existing
discussions address the following topics and illustrate the main actors and
positions in such debates, reserving a special attention to the views of the
trade unions which have engaged in specific organising efforts.
[Correspondent:] If many of the following issues are relevant in your country, please provide
details on only the three mostly debated topics:
a) Declining trade union membership and/or density;
b) Inclusion of women;
c) Inclusion of young people;
d) Inclusion of migrants;
e) Inclusion of workers in specific professional groups;
f) Inclusion of workers with particular contractual arrangements, such as such as part-time
workers, temporary agency workers, self-employed, free-lancers, etc.;
g) Differences across sectors (manufacturing and services, private sector and public sector, large
and small enterprises, etc.);
h) Differences across regions;
i) Any other dimensions (to be specified) which are relevant in your country.
Total number of words for this section: 600
3. Trade union initiatives to recruit new groups of workers
[Correspondent:] This section should provide information on trade union strategies to increase
membership.
3.1 Please provide information on any major organising actions and
campaigns (at least three) started by trade unions in your countries, since
2000, either aimed to the general workforce or to specific groups of
workers (please include at least two examples of this latter type), such as:
women; young workers; migrants; workers in particular sectors; workers in
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specific professional groups; workers with certain contractual
arrangements, like part-time workers, temporary agency workers, selfemployed, free-lancers, etc.
Since the selection of these initiatives may be highly subjective, please state very briefly the
reasons why you have chosen them (relevance for industrial relations, key position in the
national debate, media coverage, availability of more information, provide a balanced view
across sectors and/or occupations, etc.).
For each initiative, please clearly indicate:
a)
the trade union organisations involved;
b) the reasons which have led to these actions and campaigns;
c)
the target groups (all employees, only certain groups, such as those just mentioned above or
others to be specified);
d) the strategies used (for instance direct campaigns and contacts with workers at workplaces,
wide-public communication and information campaigns, web campaigns, and so on)
e)
the focus of such strategies (basically either collective bargaining and interest representation
or service provision);
f)
the level at which they take place (national, local, sectoral, company); and
g) the evaluations of the relevant trade unions on: i) the effectiveness of the specific strategies
used, and ii) the outcomes in terms of increased membership, cooperation between trade
unions, relations across trade unions, and relations with employers, both in the short and in
the long run.
h) the presence and outcomes of official/independent assessments, if present.
3.2
Please indicate whether organising initiatives in general (i.e. beyond
the specific instances illustrated above) are ‘concentrated’ or ‘diffused’, in
terms of trade unions involved (only certain trade union organisations are
active or there are no significant variations) and of target groups (they
focus only on certain groups of workers or they are part of more general
approaches to organising).
3.3
Please indicate the role of ‘new trade unions’ and of ‘grass-root
movements’ in organising initiatives in general (i.e. beyond the specific
instances illustrated above) compared to the role played by longestablished trade unions and, if relevant, whether cooperation or
competition emerged between these types of actors.
Total number of words for this section: 1,200
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4. Commentary by the NC
4.1
Please provide your own comments on the present state and recent
trends in trade union representation and membership, as well as on the ongoing debates in your country and on future prospects.
Total number of words for this section: 300
Insert name of author
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