Social Pacts: a Western Recipe for Central and Eastern Europe?

The paper examines the issue of relevancy of social pacts in the shape that has developed in the Western Europe to a specific environment of Central and Eastern Europe. Firstly, experiences of western European countries with social pacting are summarised ('the western recipe'), with a particular emphasis put on significant similarities observable between the western European countries that managed to sign social pacts. Secondly, attempts undertaken in Central and Eastern Europe in tripartite negotiations aiming at concluding social pacts are reviewed. Finally, an arguably main difference between old and new member states in the context of social dialogue is discussed, that is multiemployer collective bargaining, which while retaining relatively strong position in the west, plays marginal role in the east.