TY - JOUR

T1 - Triggering employee voice under the European Information and Consultation Directive

T2 - A non-union case study

AU - Cullinane, N.

AU - Hickland, E.

AU - Dundon, T.

AU - Dobbins, Tony

AU - Donaghey, J.

PY - 2017

Y1 - 2017

N2 - The transposition of the 2002/14/EC Directive, establishing a general framework for information and consultation (IandC), has proven contentious in largely voluntarist systems of employment regulation. Receiving particular criticism is the employee ‘opt-in’ mechanism as a means to access IandC rights. For non-union employees in particular, the ability and potential to negotiate rights for IandC is widely seen to be problematic. This article uniquely examines the opt-in mechanism in the context of non-unionism, considering how non-union employers respond to non-union employees invoking their legislative rights to IandC. Drawing upon a case study conducted over four years in a large non-union multinational, the evidence shows how the opt-in and negotiation process function to the advantage of the employer rather than the intended regulatory impact to advance employee rights.

AB - The transposition of the 2002/14/EC Directive, establishing a general framework for information and consultation (IandC), has proven contentious in largely voluntarist systems of employment regulation. Receiving particular criticism is the employee ‘opt-in’ mechanism as a means to access IandC rights. For non-union employees in particular, the ability and potential to negotiate rights for IandC is widely seen to be problematic. This article uniquely examines the opt-in mechanism in the context of non-unionism, considering how non-union employers respond to non-union employees invoking their legislative rights to IandC. Drawing upon a case study conducted over four years in a large non-union multinational, the evidence shows how the opt-in and negotiation process function to the advantage of the employer rather than the intended regulatory impact to advance employee rights.

U2 - 10.1177/0143831X15584085

DO - 10.1177/0143831X15584085

M3 - Article

VL - 38

SP - 629

EP - 655

JO - Economic and Industrial Democracy

JF - Economic and Industrial Democracy

SN - 0143-831X

IS - 4

ER -