Agnes Jongerius, former chairman of the Netherlands federation of trade unions and ETUC affiliate, FNV, demonstrates in Brussels on April, 2014 for a social Europe. Wikicommons/ Sebastiaan ter Burg. Some rights reserved.“Trade union growth and increased union density must become a political priority. A strong membership base is a prerequisite for a powerful and representative trade union movement.” Put another way, trade unionism draws its legitimacy from its members, and it is through them, and in order to obtain results for them, that it engages in the public debate, struggles and negotiations. This is the message adopted by the ETUC congress held in Paris last October.
There has been a decrease in the number of unionised workers in Europe since the 1980s. In spite of varying situations depending on the country, with growth in the number of members in some places, trade unions have not regained the number of members they had in the 1970s. Trade union development is a key challenge for our organisations, but above all crucial for the workers themselves who need strong unions more than ever.
Many people are openly questioning the role and prerogatives of trade unions. Obsolete, worthless, from another age… trade unions are often depicted as leftovers from a world that no longer exits. The reality is different.
