Development of Social Dialogue in the Baltic Sea Region

Social dialogue as a crucial and constructive element in building a sustainable Baltic Sea Region is the starting point of the BSLN. The labour markets are the backbone of sustainable economic growth. Without a doubt, the social partners are regulators and experts for the labour markets, even though labour market systems and models differ from one country to another.

After three years the BSLN Forum should be able to exist as an autonomous forum or platform linked with pre-existing political institutions. The forum should be a knowledge pool for the labour market policy issues of the region, a discussion platform for problems and challenges and a board for further activities needed in these areas.

Transnational Social Dialogue

One of the most important results of the BSLN so far is that it has enabled, for the first time, the creation of cooperation structures for transnational social dialogue in the Baltic Sea Region.

Transnational social dialogue is taking shape within the BSLN through the tripartite Steering Committee and the Facilitator Team, in which representatives of trade unions, employer organisations, parliaments and governmental organizations work together to create sustainable regional labour markets in Europe.

The work done within the BSLN can be seen as first steps towards developing transnational tripartite cooperation in the Baltic Sea Region. In order to facilitate the development of social dialogue in the region, three high-level tripartite conferences have been organised over the course of  the 3 project years to develop new initiatives, partnerships and international contacts.

National Social Dialogue

Bargaining between employees and employers as well as tripartite cooperation are tools which may be employed to jointly develop labour markets in the region. The BSLN promotes social dialogue from the grass roots to the national level.

The project especially emphasizes social dialogue at the national level, especially in focus countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland).

In the Baltic States, social partners are actively working together in the BSLN, focusing on joint labour market actions dealing with the economic crisis and mobility of labour.

In Germany the social partners are setting up a joint action plan.

Various project actions based on cooperation between employers and employees are taking place at the grass roots level in Poland and the Nordic countries.