Submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree: Masters in Development Theory and Policy in the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management at the University of Witwatersrand / South Africa enshrines itself as a democratic developing country that adheres to the principles of good governance and acknowledges the role that civil society participation in state affairs can have. The purpose of this study was to establish the role and effectiveness of NEDLAC’s social dialogue process through evaluating the contribution of civil society participation in the Development Chamber; and to understand the relationship between NEDLAC’s social dialogue model and the World Bank ideology on civil society participation in policy making. The study highlights that NEDLAC remains one of the key vehicles for social dialogue in South Africa and there have been positive contributions by civil society participation in the NEDLAC process. It takes its premise from the ILO model of social dialogue, whilst it also adapts from the World Bank ideology of civil society participation by including civil society in the process, through the Development Chamber. However, the effectiveness of civil society participation in policy making through NEDLAC is at risk due to the impact of the changing socioeconomic environment. In many ways this study highlights contradictions in South Africa’s social dialogue process. The Development Chamber is not being optimally used for its intended purposes as representativity and accountability of the community organisations are a concern; whilst there is an increasingly active civil society, demonstrated by civil unrest, which is not part of this social dialogue process.

Most of researchers put stress on Taiwan¡¦s state transitional regimes in relations to State corporatism or the possibility of Social corporatism. But it¡¦s rare to find researches and literatures that explore Taiwan¡¦s corporatist concertation status between its government and labor unions. This study collects and discusses some main Western theories and Taiwan¡¦s researches of corporatism, and to explore the development of corporatism during different periods of Taiwan by using the connotations of those reviews. The study focuses on five stages as below: the stage of corporatism without labor (1949-1986), of authoritarian corporatism after the abolition of Martial Law (1987- 1992), of state corporatism in democratizing (1993-1999),of developmental democratic corporatism (2000-2004), and the stage of re-developmental democratic corporatism(2004- 2008). The former three stages under KMT government, labor union¡¦s system performed as Monist- Corporatism, and the latter two came with Taiwan¡¦s democratic consolidation. Therefore, with the developing plural society and the party rotation in 2000, the Monist-Corporatism system had been strongly impacted, and the monopolistic Chinese Federation of Labor also broken into four national labor units which had been recognized and admitted by DPP government. The study shows some formalization of informal horizontal concertation, inexplicit corporatist level types, the pattern with neo-corporatist properties, and certain characteristics of social corporatism through the governmental arrangements of Economic Development Advisory Conference (2001), and the local, industrial social dialogues, also the National Social Dialogue Round Table Meetings; those were held recently with conceptions of social partnership and tripartism. And the study also indicates Taiwan as a case of low degree model of corporatist concertation with the lack of formal vertical institution and the like at the present stage.

Abstract Bachelor’s thesis, Enterprising and Business Development, Linnaeus University School of Business and Economics, 2EB00E, VT 2015 Authors: Jesper Gunnarsson and Mathias Holst Tutor: Maria Persdotter Isaksson Title: ”They get breakfast and transportation. What else could they need?”. An exploratory study of how to improve ethical labour standards in Sri Lankan companies. Background: The globalization has led to an increase in movement of goods and capital across national borders. This has contributed to an increase in overseas manufacturing in low-wage countries, meaning a decrease in costs and improved profits for western companies. Since the ethical standards generally are lower in developing countries numerous NGOs have launched awareness campaigns for CSR. In Sri Lanka there are issues regarding ethical labour. There is a concern that the government are not committing enough towards the improvement of these standards. The improvement of ethical standards has the potential to improve the quality of life and the entire economy which makes it interesting to see how the government in cooperation with other stakeholders can improve the situation. Purpose: The purpose of the thesis is to explore how ethical labour standards can be improved in Sri Lankan companies. Method: The study uses a general inductive approach where two main themes are extracted from seven interviews with representatives from the Sri Lankan government, Labour Department, ILO and employers. The study is of a qualitative character and its hermeneutic approach allows the subjective opinions of the respondents to affect the direction of the study. Conclusions: Through this study it has been explored that ethical labour standards in Sri Lankan companies can be improved through two categories: 1) The role of the government and through 2) communication and cooperation. The most prominent conclusions are that the Sri Lankan government have to increase their commitment in the ethical labour discussion and the social dialogue, that promotes the interests of all the stakeholders within the debate, is required. Through a stronger ethical labour legislation further social initiatives can have better conditions through out the Sri Lankan society and through ICT-implementations the monitoring of ethical labour can increase in efficiency, hence increase the ethical labour standards in Sri Lankan companies.

Far from signalling the end of social dialogue, the Marikana massacre underscores the importance of refining and adapting existing peak-level negotiating fora such as the National Economic, Development and Labour Council (Nedlac). To ensure social dialogue remains an integral component of the South African policy-making and national decision-making system, social partners rely on a system of consultation and dialogue to build on a shared national vision. Dialogue is accepted as a means of consolidating a young, democratic but deeply divided South African society. It’s also a medium through which to enhance participation in policy formulation and decision-making. The study reaffirms the critical role that social dialogue plays in a developing economy such as South Africa using the case study of the Marikana massacre to illustrate this point. However, through an analysis of official documents and media reports, as well as selected interviews, the study highlights that the effectiveness of social dialogue through a statutory structure such as Nedlac, is at risk of collapse due to the low levels of commitment of the social partners involved in the Council’s processes. The enhanced maturity of collective bargaining in creating a platform for engagement between labour and business is also emphasised through the outcomes of the research. The research recommends an overhaul of social dialogue principles and practices in order to derive benefit from the numerous benefits inherent in social dialogue. / Mini Dissertation (MSocSci)--University of Pretoria 2017. / Sociology / MSocSci / Unrestricted

As part of her membership negotiations with the EU, Turkey is expected to adopt the &ldquo / acquis communataire&rdquo / , which requires her to adjust her administrative structures to European standards in a variety of policy spheres, including the social policy and social dialogue. Within this context, this thesis aims to analyze the approaches of the Turkish trade union confederations towards the practices of social dialogue at the European level, as well as their experiences of social dialogue mechanisms in Turkey through the data gathered from in depth interviews with the officials of the three trade union confederations, TURK-IS, DISK, HAK-IS, and some of their member unions. While all Turkish trade union confederations find social dialogue mechanisms fairly operational at the EU level, in relation to Turkey they all agree that such mechanisms are far from meeting their expectations. Beyond this common point the conceptualizations of social dialogue, interpretations over its structure, functions, and features, as well as the evaluations accounting for its underdevelopment in the Turkish context, show considerable variation across the three confederations.

Corporations have increasingly turned to CSR-initiatives in order to monitor workers’ rights and responsibilities in global supply chains. This article argues that in order for these CSR- initiatives to succeed in enabling workers’ voice at the workplace, the shared benefits of the practice must be realized by all stakeholders. In this article, H&M’s social dialogue project in Bangladesh has been analyzed through the lens of social practice theory identifying three crucial elements which must exist or be created, linked and sustained in order to produce behaviour change, which in this case is social dialogue between factory workers and factory management. This article argues that H&M’s social dialogue project has all the essential elements and objectives to increase workers’ voice and improve industrial relations. It also points out the importance of not viewing bipartite social dialogue as the end goal. Instead, H&M’s implementation of bipartite social dialogue at their suppliers’ factories should serve as the stepping stone toward tripartite social dialogue where trade unions can empower workers in the readymade garment-sector. The trade unions have the unique right to bargain collectively and if corporations truly want to ensure workers’ rights, they must promote increased union activity in the industry. This research describes the key activities, training methodology, objectives and expected outcomes of H&M’s social dialogue project followed by an analysis of workers employed in Bangladeshi readymade garment-sector experiences, attitudes and associations to social dialogue. By analysing workers’ associations to social dialogue and H&M’s objectives of the social dialogue project, certain conditions have been identified as crucial in order to enable efficient social dialogue at the workplace.

La fragilité du tissu économique impose de porter une attention particulière à la résolution amiable et à la prévention des conflits collectifs du travail. Pour ce faire, il convient de s’intéresser à la manière dont le dialogue social est promu en période conflictuelle. Le dialogue social conflictuel peut être défini comme tout processus destiné à réinjecter du dialogue dans un « espace » de conflit. Le Code du travail organise depuis longtemps des procédures spéciales (conciliation, médiation, arbitrage) destinées à parvenir à un accord amiable. Ces dernières ne permettent pas une résolution pacifiée en raison du désintérêt qu’elles suscitent. Les parties préfèrent se tourner vers une négociation informelle lorsqu'elles ne choisissent pas de recourir au juge. L’immixtion quasi systématique des pouvoirs publics et le rapport de force existant emportent toutefois le risque d’altération des échanges. L’utilisation des mécanismes issus de la justice participative apporterait une réponse satisfaisante à ce problème. Il permettrait d’optimiser les négociations quitte à conférer à l’avocat une place nouvelle dans le processus de résolution. Ces traitements ont néanmoins une vocation purement curative. L’engagement d’une procédure d’incitation, sur le modèle de la RSE, pour favoriser la voie du dialogue social, en amont de toute situation conflictuelle, serait pertinent. Mais une pratique viable du dialogue social conflictuel impose de se questionner sur son cadre juridique. L’analyse des notions de conflits collectifs et de dialogue social, et l'instrumentalisation fréquente du procès dans ce contexte, révèlent les limites du droit. Il convient de tenter de les dépasser / The fragile economic fabric of society forces us to focus our attention on amicable solutions and on the prevention of collective labour disputes. To this end, it appears appropriate to consider the way social dialogue is promoted in times of conflict. The conflictual social dialogue can be defined as any process meant to reinject dialogue into an “area” of conflict. The labour code has long provided for special proceedings (conciliation, mediation, arbitration) intended to lead to an amicable. These ones do not allow for a pacified resolution given the little interest they arouse. The parties prefer to turn to an informal negotiation when they do not opt for a court action. The almost systematic interference of the public authorities and the power struggle that exists carry with them the risk of altering the exchanges. The use of the mechanisms originating in participatory justice would bring a satisfactory answer to this problem. It would enable the optimisation of the negotiations, even if it would thereby give the lawyer a new role in the resolution process. These devices however have a purely curative vocation. It would be relevant to start an incentive process, on the RSE’s model to give an edge to social dialogue ahead of any dispute. Still a viable use of conflictual social dialogue forces us to wonder about its legal framework. The analysis of the notions of collective disputes and social dialogue together with the frequent exploitation of lawsuits in this context show the limits of the law. We should try to go beyond them

The aim of this thesis is mainly to describe a trade union as a legal entity and provide through an empirical approach a closer look at the social reality surrounding a trade union. This thesis also analyses the impact of the social reality on the trade union and, on the contrary, consequences of the trade union behaviour, which can directly influence the social mood. The thesis also examines the current position of the trade union from its rich historical context. That is the main reason, why this thesis contains a very detailed overview of the historical fight for good working conditions in the Czech territory. I personally consider this part as very important, as good working conditions are main indicator of willingness to unionize into a trade or a labour union. The thesis likewise focuses on the description of the current legal regulation of a trade union competence at an employer. It is important for better understanding functionary work, which is not only about collective bargaining. The trade union topic is very actual due to the recent recodification of private law and the emerged issue of new classification model of legal entities. The issue is very often subject to doctrine and judicial decisions (especially in case of a trade union). Generally speaking, we can say that not all subjects...

Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often experience difficulty in initiating and maintaining social dialogue in multiple settings. This study examined the effects of training multiple social scripts, used in sequence, on the number of conversational exchanges within a social dialogue in four male participants with ASD. A multiple baseline design was used across participants to determine if there was an increase in the number of conversational exchanges within a social dialogue after training. In training sessions, participants learned the scripted conversations and used them to engage in social dialogue. During training sessions, scripts were completely faded for three of four participants. However, none of the participants demonstrated an increase in the number of conversational exchanges during the generalization condition in naturalistic settings. This failure to increase in the number of conversational exchanges in generalization settings could possibly be attributed to one or more of the following: a lack of a discriminative stimulus to cue the use of the script, too many words in the scripts, lack of training on more simple scripts first, and a lack of adequate time to facilitate generalization.

Cette thèse porte sur la question de l’intégration de l’espace ferroviaire européen, à partir d’une approche centrée sur les relations professionnelles communautaires qui se sont développées depuis le milieu des années 1980 entre représentants des salariés, des employeurs et des institutions publiques dans ce secteur. En s’appuyant surl’analyse de documents et de bases de données publiques, sur une enquête de terrain par entretien et par observation et sur le dépouillement d’archives, elle adopte une perspective sociohistorique sur ces évolutions, qui prend pour pivot l’analyse des activités du comité de dialogue social européen « chemins de fer ». Dans une première partie, nous soulignons que les évolutions du dialogue social « chemins de fer » ne peuvent pasêtre comprises indépendamment de la dynamique du dialogue social européen interprofessionnel, qui a notamment participé à la transformation du cadre institutionnel du dialogue social sectoriel et influé sur la nature des produits et sur les thématiques abordées par les acteurs du rail. Dans une seconde partie, nous montrons cependant que les activités les plus significatives dans ce secteur s’articulent à l’enjeu de l’intégration ferroviaire européenne, qui constitue l’un des objectifs clés de la politique européenne des transports. Elles aboutissent à la fois à une mise en débat des orientations générales de cette politique et à des activités participant à la construction d’un espace ferroviaire européen plus intégré : les acteurs ont ainsi participé à l’élaboration d’une législation communautaire dans le domaine de la certification professionnelle des cheminots mobiles (« permis de conduire » européen) et ont mené plusieurs initiatives marquant l’émergence d’une négociation collective européenne. Le développement de l’interopérabilité technique et économique du système ferroviaire a donc débouché sur la construction d’une interopérabilité sociale. Les acteurs européens sont ainsi parvenus à construire le niveau communautaire du système de relations professionnelles européen qui émerge actuellement dans le rail. / This PhD thesis deals with the integration of the European railway area in a perspective of industrial relations’ analysis. Based on a field survey by interview and observation and on analysis of public documents and archives, it adopts a socio-historical perspective, centered on the activities of railway sector’s European social dialogue committee. In a first part, we underline that “railways” EU social dialogue’s evolutions have to be understood in the light of interprofessional European social dialogue’s dynamic, as it has influenced the shaping of sectoral dialogue’s institutional framework as well as the nature of products and themes addressed in the railway sector. In a second part, we show however that the most significant activities in this sector are related to integration of European railways, one of EU railway policy’s key objectives. Industrial relations’ actors have both discussed the general orientations of this policy and taken part to the process of building an integrated railway area in Europe: they have participated to shape EU legislation on mobile railway workers’ professional certification(European “driving licence”) and have managed to conduct successfully in their sector Europeancollective bargaining processes. The development of technical and economical interoperability of EUrailway system has therefore led to the building of social interoperability. EU level actors have thusmanaged to build the community level of a European industrial relation system, currently emerging in the railway sector.