A multilevel social relations history Unions into ETUC and ETUC into European societies

Formed between 1973 and 1974, the European Trade Union Confederation, which held its latest and 13th Congress in Paris (29sept-2 October 2015), has been closely linked from the start with the European integration project. Right from its inception, the ETUC has positioned itself as a trade union partner in the European political project. It does not embody the idea of a regional representation of the international labour movement, and allows social democrat, Christian trade unions and unions with other democratic identities, to cohabit under the same banner. To understand the dynamic pursued by the ETUC, it is essential to revisit the reasons for the development of trade union organisations, which were created to protect workers’ interests in those employment relationships developed at the time of the industrial revolution. They then became national confederal organisations, but this led to the need for a new form of representation at European level.