The Economic and Financial Crisis and Collective
Labour Law in Europe
Niklas Bruun, Klaus Lörcher, Isabelle Schömann
The current economic and financial crisis erupted
several years ago. Its effects impacted deeply upon society, in which legal
rules and social patterns have developed to enable the establishment of
civilisation, justice and peace. Over time it has become more and more obvious
that policy, financial and economic actors have adopted austerity measures as a
main tool to solve the ensuing problems, and that these measures have hit
social policy standards sometimes dramatically.
Recent analyses have dealt with several aspects of
this issue. This book focuses on one important element: the impact on
collective labour law. It seeks to add to the debate by presenting mainly legal
arguments derived from different sources and backgrounds, examining the EU and
'Troika' measures, the economic and political background and the sometimes
dramatic consequences of austerity measures on democracy, collective bargaining
and the right to strike. Against the framework of EU law, the relevant ILO
Conventions, (Revised) European Social Charter and European Convention on Human
Rights provisions, the non-compliance of these measures is analysed and
demonstrated. The book is also dedicated to procedural questions, and in
particular, how legal approaches may be used to challenge austerity measures.
