Slovak Republic
Key Facts
| Population | 5,425,000 |
|---|---|
| Collective Bargaining Coverage | 35% |
| Proportion of Employees in Unions | 17% |
| Principal Level of Collective Bargaining |
industry and company |
| Workplace Representation |
union and works council |
| Board-level Representation |
yes: state-owned and private companies |
| Company Board Structure |
dualistic |
Trade Union
Union density, at between a sixth and a fifth of all employees, is higher in the Slovak Republic than in most of the other states of central and Eastern Europe. There is a single dominant union confederation, KOZ SR, although individual unions have considerable autonomy and influence.
more ...Collective Bargaining
Collective bargaining takes place at both industry and company level and between 35% and 40% of employees are covered. The level of coverage has declined in recent years, and new legislative changes may lead to a further reduction. Company level agreements are important in setting effective wages, leading to substantial variations between companies.
more ...Workplace Representation
Recent years have produced major changes in legislation favouring works councils over workplace trade union organisations. Both can now exist in the same workplace and powers are divided between them. It is too soon to be clear what impact this is having in practice, particularly as relatively new legislation, which came into force in September 2007, has readjusted the responsibilities of the two bodies – this time in favour of the workplace union organisation.
more ...European-level Representation
Slovak members on bodies relating to European Works Councils and the European Company are generally appointed by existing employee representatives where they are present, who can be either trade union representatives and/or works council members. The one exception is Slovak representatives at board level. They are elected by all employees.
more ...Health and Safety
The labour inspection services play an essential role in workers' health and safety.
Financial Participation
Employee financial participation plays no major role in Slovakia. Unlike in other Eastern European economies, the privatization process which started at the beginning of the 1990s did not have a significant impact on the emergence of participation schemes.1 There is no great focus on financial participation in the public debate at present.
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