LoFi-EU
Decentralised wage-setting systems in the EU: On the operationalisation of the performance principle on a company and a national level, and its implications for collective wage disputes
Project lead
Prof. Dr. Ingo Matuschek
Project duration
July 2020 – September 2022
Cooperation partner
Prof. Dr. Frank Kleemann (University of Duisburg-Essen)
Project Description
The cooperative social partnership based on the collective wage autonomy of unions and employers' associations in Germany is seen as a successful model in international comparison, even if signs of erosion are there. Wage reforms such as the pay framework agreement or the reform of collective agreements in the public sector in the mid-2010s, elements of performance-related pay and opening clauses are contributing to, amongst other things, a decentralisation of wage setting, which is leading to its commercialisation and individualised arrangements.
Despite their diversity, wage policy development in EU member states is also characterised by decentralisation. However, there is a lack of comparison with other collective wage scales and their impact. It is important to consider this with regard to securing the location, and to explore the consequences of decentralised wage setting, not least concerning transformation patterns of stability in labour markets and issues of wage performance and fairness. Differences can be found in terms of the strength of membership in unions and employers' associations, wage setting processes and state protection. EU legal standards also have a binding influence. During the crisis of 2008/09, a kind of cross-border wage coordination was established in the Eurozone, which enabled companies to pay wages below the collective minimum wage threshold.
Aims of the Project
Against this backdrop, the project aims to analyse collective wage dentralisation processes in the EU in an integrated way, focusing in particular on the neglected meso level of the operationalisation of decentralised evaluation and pay systems at company and collective wage level. Contrasting exemplary case studies focus on the various modes of implementing the performance principle and the (inter-)company disputes that come with it. The study will also examine which aspects of wage-setting systems require European coordination in terms of decentralisation and what role tripartite parties (can) play in this context. The selection of countries for the case studies takes place based on the principle of maximum contrast concerning the extent of impact and decentralisation of the national collective wage law as well as the strength of the unions/associations. Alongside Germany, institutions in Greece, Spain, Great Britain and Slovenia are also included in an exploratory design. Document analyses and expert interviews provide a more detailed account of collective wage and company practice. For all countries, the focus of the project is on the application of the collective wage agreements in companies, and, in particular on classification practices in the context of collective wage disputes brought together in a cross-country comparative perspective.