1. Presentation of the draft intermediary expert report
CEEP Project: Social Services in European Cross-Industry Social Dialogue – Towards a strong and deeper involvement
2nd Round Table Meeting, Vilnius 18 December 2018
Presentation of the draft intermediary expert report
Eckhard Voss

2. Contents Overview of the research
Provision of SSGIs in the six countries
Challenges, SSGIs are facing in the six countries
Role of social dialogue at cross-industry and sectoral level

3. Scope of the project Social Services of General Interest:
EU Commission: “Social services of general interest are those that respond to the needs of vulnerable citizens, and are based on the principles of solidarity and equal access. They can be both of an economic or non-economic nature. Examples include social security schemes, employment services and social housing.”
NACE Code
Description
85.59
Other education n.e.c.
86.1
Hospital activities
86.9
Other human health activities
87.1
Residential nursing care activities
87.2
Residential care activities for mental retardation, mental health and substance abuse
87.3
Residential care activities for the elderly and disabled
87.9
Other residential care activities
88.1
Social work activities without accommodation for the elderly and disabled
88.91
Child day-care activities
88.99
Other social work activities without accommodation n.e.c.

4. SSGIs: Share of employment
Share of employment in human health and social work sectors in total employment, 2013 (%)

5. Level and type of social service provision
Level of service provision
Very diverse and reflecting the service specificities, national welfare state tradition, public administration traditions and size of the country
Most services are regulated at national level and provided at local or regional level, sometimes directly falling within the competences of LRG
Role of public and private providers
Public service provision: plays a role in the provision of all SSGIs, specific public-private mix differs from country to country and sector to sector
Private, not-for profit service provision: Strong role in care related activities in all countries
Private, for-profit provision: dominates medical and dental practices and plays an increasing role in areas where public provision is not sufficient
Trends: private, for-profit providers playing an increasing role (e.g. residential care, homecare, childcare)

6. Level and type of social service provision
Important role of LRG, namely municipalities and communities for the provision of social services such as family welfare, nursing homes, health protection
SSGIs are organised at local government level (mayor or county general directorates for social assistance) and delivered by public or private organisations
Health sector: highly centralised systems, ongoing reforms (Cyprus) and emerging private hospitals in specific fields, addressing higher income groups
Private service provision: relatively unregulated environment …

7. Challenges Investments in social protection, education and healthcare
Poverty and fighting social exclusion
Severe material deprivation, coverage and effectiveness of social benefits
Labour market integration of specific groups
Tackling child poverty, family support
Adequate housing
Quality and efficiency of health care and medical services
Adequate access to curative or preventive health care
Ability to address demographic and other challenges
Adequate, affordable and quality long-term care
Investments in new technologies, e-health and medicine
Integration or health and social care provision
Residential care activities for elderly and disabled
Lack of capacities, understaffing, qualification, working conditions, etc.
Education and training, adult learning
Investments, equal access and opportunities, etc.

8. Employers in SSGI
Mapping of organisations and actors reveals lack of employer organisations in SSGIs
National governments, ministries, local and regional authorities are the main counterparts of trade unions when it comes to bargaining
Three types of providers, associations, professional organisations and bodies were identified:
Public organisations and bodies representing municipal authority providers; sub-sector, e.g. older people, people with disabilities, childcare.
Not-for-profit: faith-based organisations; volunteering organisations, e.g. in the field of child care, community care, etc.
For-profit: Types of service e.g. associations of private hospitals, nursing homes, kindergartens; residential care for the elderly.
Social Enterprises: seem to not play a significant role.

9. Social Dialogue – Overall features and trends
Also due to late accession to EU, ‘Social Dialogue’ is a relatively new/less known concept in all six countries
Transformation process, EU accession as well as 2008 crisis has triggered tripartite consultation and agreements
Collective bargaining and social dialogue in some countries addressed by legal/institutional change (e.g. new labour code 2017 in LT, abolishment of OET in HU, reform of trade union representativeness criteria in RO in 2011)
Key problem of bipartite social dialogue is weakness of social partners in terms of organisational strength and capacities, representativeness and legitimacy
This is particularly striking at sector/branch level
Against this, collective bargaining at best is taking place at company level

10. Social dialogue indicators
Social Partners organisational density
Collective Bargaining (bargaining coverage public sector)
Bulgaria
EO: 50
TU: 17 30
Cyprus
EO: 62
TU: 45 52
Hungary
EO: 40
TU: 10
23 (35)
Lithuania
EO: 14
N.a. (10)
Malta
EO: 60
TU: 52
61 (100)
Romania 36

11. Tripartite Social Dialogue
Country
National level
Sectoral level
Regional, local
Bulgaria
National Council for Triparite Cooperation
Under umbrella of respective ministries
At district and municipal level
Cyprus
Labour Advisory Board, Economic Consultative Committee
Under umbrella of respective ministries, e.g. social security committee
Hungary
After abolition of National Reconciliation Council in 2011, four tripartite advisory bodies have been created, including National Interest Reconciliation Council for the Public Sector
Under umbrella of respective ministries, e.g. Social Sector Interest Reconciliation Foum
Lithuania
Tripartite Council
Tripartite councils in municipalities
Malta
Malta Council for Economic and Social Development
Gozo Regional Committee
Romania
Social and Economic Council
National Tripartite Council for Social Dialogue
2017 Ministry for Public Consultation and Social Dialogue established
Permanent and ad-hoc social dialogue committees under umbrella of different ministries
Social dialogue committees at prefectual, regional and local level

12. Bipartite Social Dialogue and bargaining
Country
Actors and collective bargaining
Bulgaria
Trade unions and government, municipalities
Municipal CLAs, e.g. education, healthcare, social care, nurseries,
Cyprus
SSGIs represented by cross-sectoral employer organisation OEB
OEB affiliates in the sector (e.g. tertiary education, pre-school child education, private hospitals) not involved in collective bargaining or dialogue with unions
Hungary
Some actors identified (hospitals, child protection) but not involved in collective bargaining
No collective agreements at sector level
Fragmented system of collective bargaining and bargaining outcomes in the public sectors, if any, between trade unions and local authorities (e.g. nursery employees)
Lithuania
SSGIs not represented by employer organisations
Collective agreements signed with respective Ministries, e.g. hospital activies (2017), education (2017), residential care activities or the agreement of May 2018 on social services
Malta
No sector level bargaining in SSGIs
MEA affiliates in sectors such as health and professional serives
Romania
Sector level bargaining made very difficult by Social Dialogue Act 2011, very restrictive representativeness criteria

13. Issues to discuss
Representation of SSGIs is fragmented and reflects diversity of service provision types and levels
Experience of six focus countries reflects general patterns of social dialogue in the respective countries
Organisational domains of trade unions and employers do not correspond to each other
Sectoral social dialogue therefore is difficult to organise in national frameworks where there is not tradition of SSGIs
Against this there certainly is a need to strengthen the representation of SSGIs in cross-sectoral social dialogue
Is there a need of cross-sectoral social dialogue in SSGIs?