Potential regulation of employment relations and the European sectoral social dialogue

Is there potential, at European level, for joint regulation of employment relations? Over the short history of the European integration, European institutions and social partners set up structures where social dialogue takes place, at cross-­industry, sector and company level. When compared to collective bargaining bodies in each national system of industrial relations, it is clear that these structures do not have the same role (Marginson & Sisson 2004, Keune & Marginson 2013). However, they formally hold a capacity to define joint rules that can be implemented in the twenty-­eight member states. To what extent does this capacity lead to effective regulation of employment relations, or to potential regulation? The paper addresses these questions by the means of close examination of the European sectoral social dialogue. It shows that the potential for regulation at this level does not only depend on institutional settings but, rather, that it largely depends on ‘vertical relations’ between the European-­‐‑level bodies and national social partners.