The role of social actors in times of crisis / El papel de los actores sociales en tiempos de crisis

Abstract

The aim of this article is to analyze the performance of the two main trade unions (UGT and CCOO) and the employers’ association CEOE during the economic crisis. The analysis focuses on their position on major reforms, on their ideological differences over various public policies, as well as on their ability to negotiate collective bargaining agreements. We depart from the command of the Spanish Constitution of 1978, which in its seventh article gives trade unions and business associations a prominent role in representing economic interests, to suggest that social actors would be likely to reduce their chances of veto in times of economic crisis given the exceptional situation. However, the article confirms a gap in the approaches of social actors and the few options for a strong social dialogue. This leads to a greater distance between the social actors and the public opinion, as evidenced by the results derived from the survey on ‘Culture and Political Representation in Spain’.

Keywords

• UGT
• CCOO
• CEOE
• public policies
• public opinion
• social dialogue