Senegal .The haves and have-nots of "social dialogue"
Sidy CISSOKHO
Since the 2000s, Senegal has equipped itself with a vast collection of institutions in which « social dialogue » between workers, employers and the state are to take place. This framework regulates relations between the authorities and the union movement, which have long been closely linked. However, the implementation of this system excludes the majority of the workforce and its representatives, chief among them workers in the informal sector. It results in the coexistence of two negotiation tracks: the first, official, track serving a minority of union representatives and salaried workers; the other, unofficial, one accounting for the majority.
Keywords: Senegal, social dialogue, unions, informal work.
China. The ambivalent promotion of collective bargaining in the food delivery platform sector
Xingrong XU and Arnaud MIAS
This article analyses the Chinese government’s ambivalent promotion of collective bargaining in the food delivery platform sector. The digital transition has created new types of employment, representing a significant proportion of the informal economy. Although the government encourages such types of employment to combat poverty, workers struggle to obtain adequate legal protection. The authorities promote collective bargaining to make up the legislative shortfall, but this is often a token effort and of little effectiveness. The unions – under state control – and the platforms dominate the negotiations, leaving workers in a precarious situation.
Keywords: China, platform, collective bargaining, informal work, precarity.
Bulgaria .Facing a skilled labour shortage: what can social dialogue contribute?
Vassil KIROV and Joyce GAZALE
Bulgaria has had to deal with a skilled labour shortage in recent years, hampering its economic development. This article aims to examine the strategies and initiatives put in place by the Bulgarian government and the social partners, particularly in the mechanical engineering sector, to stem the emigration of skilled labour and encourage emigrants to return by improving working conditions, training and pay.
United Kingdom .Employment law, a key issue in the forthcoming general election
Jacques FREYSSINET
The United Kingdom general election on 4 July 2024 is expected to end fourteen years of Conservative governments and make way for changes in economic and social policy. One of the key areas of potential change is that of employment law. The Labour party’s manifesto contains a considerable number of pledges. We look at four of them representing crucial issues in the current context: zero hours contracts, fire and rehire practices, the preservation of rights inherited from European Union directives, and limitations on the exercise of the right to strike.
Keywords: United Kingdom, elections, zero hours contracts, dismissal, right to strike, Brexit.
Europe .Ryanair or the painstaking construction of a grassroots European trade union movement (2017-2023)
Jean VANDEWATTYNE and Bruno BAURAIND
Despite Irish low-cost airline Ryanair’s hostility towards all forms of worker representation and collective bargaining, it has not entirely avoided labour disputes. In 2018, the collective organization of workers led to offensive Europe-wide strikes. Subsequently, the issues encountered by the Boeing 737 Max and the Covid-19 pandemic have slowed this movement and contributed to bringing its focus back to domestic issues. This conflict is nevertheless hugely instructive as to the predicates of the strike action’s Europeanisation and the modalities of grassroots European trade unionism, as well as its longer-term structural challenges.
Keywords: Europe, unions, Ryanair, strike.