文档介绍：Chapter 18 Unions and Collective Bargaining Jens Kirchner and Pascal R. Kremp A. Coalitions I. Background From the times of early capitalism employees in Germany started to form trade unions in order to improve their working conditions. Employers responded by creating employers’ associations. These associations act as a counterbalance to the trade unions, forming a negotiating partner for con?icts with the unions. Both trade unions and employers’ associations fall under the generic heading of “coalitions.” II. De?nition of the Term “Coalition” A coalition exists where the following conditions are met: It is a voluntary and private body of employees or employers, which has been established for a certain period of time, has a anisation and is democratically administrated Independence (especially independ ence from employers and employers’ associations from the State and from o ther social groups, such as political parties) The primary purpose is the protection and promotion of working and economic conditions In order to conclude collective bargaining agreements, the coalition must be willing to be part of respective agreements, must accept the current law concerning labour con?ict and arbitration and must have so-called “social power,” which J. Kirchner et al. (eds.), Key Aspects of German Employment and Labour Law , DOI -3-642-00678-4_18, # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010 187 means that it must be able to put pressure on its employer and the employers’ association. III. Freedom of Association The basic right of the so-called “Freedom of Association” is codi?ed in Art. 9 sec. 3 of the German Constitution. The purpose of freedom of association is the protection and promotion of working and economic conditions. It is a basic right, pass- ing rights for individuals as well as for coalitions themselves. Freedom of association allows individuals to found coalitions and to participate in or refrain from them. This basic right is highly protected under Ge