The broken link – do trade unions represent the interests of the unemployed?: Evidence from the UK, Germany and Denmark within the framework of the European Employment Strategy

Abstract

According to the traditional view, the interests of the unemployed and the employed are supposed to follow a unifying logic, due to the threat of high unemployment to job security, wages and working conditions. However, due to labour markets becoming increasingly segmented and knowledge-based, it may be questioned to what extent the traditional link between the employed and the unemployed still holds, leading to a possible division of the labour force into a core group of those with basically secure jobs, and several peripheral groups subject to job insecurity and social exclusion. In this context, it seems relevant to analyse the relationship between the interests of the employed and unemployed, including the role of trade unions as having their own organisational interest. For this purpose, this paper includes an examination of new statistical evidence on the behaviour of employed and unemployed people with regard to trade union membership.