Heft36 1 - SFB 580 - Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena

LYUDMYLA REFERENCES LITERATUR VOLYNETS
strate, collective bargaining is ineffective.
Beyond the weaknesses in union ability to
enforce the regulation of IR, collective agreements
can be considered arena of contestation
between different trade unions. In particular,
in the case that more unions exist at the same
enterprise, they must establish a joint representation
body to negotiate and sign agreements.
Respectively, if unions fail to establish such
a body (a quite probable case in light of the
intra-union rivalries), employers can choose
the union to negotiate with. This allocates
some advantages to the ex-official unions and
basically marginalizes or excludes independent
trade unions from the arena of such regulation
of working conditions.
COLLECTIVE LABOUR DISPUTES AND SETTLE-
MENT PROCEDURES
The institutions of dispute settlement were
implemented in Ukraine only in 1998. They
are based on the procedure of conciliation between
the contractual parties, and envisage the
disputes solution by labour arbitrary and National
Service of Mediation and Conciliation.
The latter is responsible for the registration of
disputes and issues non-binding recommendation
to solve the relevant issues. Interestingly,
the facilitation of the collective disputes by the
national conciliation service acquired the forms
of the suppression of protest actions undertaken
in cases of disputes. Only in the case that the
parties to the dispute have completed all mediation
and conciliation procedures can strikes
be declared. Otherwise, strikes are illegal. Thus,
the legislative regulation of labour disputes, in
fact, prompts the individualization of labour
conflicts and their resolution through long,
drawn-out judicial procedures rather than on
the basis of mobilization 22 .
This kind of regulation originates from the
promotion of social partnership in Ukraine
by ILO. The benefits of the consensus-driven
policy process are undeniable - the articulation
of labour disputes is channelled into an
arbitrary sphere by law in a way that creates
obstacles for workers’ collective action at
times where interests can be pursued solely
in a militant manner. Many union leaders
explain the lack of strikes by these legal preconditions
23 . In particular, major obstacles
arise out of this for independent trade unions.
Whereas the emergence of many unions is
conflict-driven, independent trade unions are
established in cases where conflicts that arise
are not absorbed by any mechanisms of their
institutional articulation. Until the conciliation
procedures are completed, unions are all
too often pressured and destroyed. The spread
of such experiences among new trade unions
makes the further establishment of independent
trade unions more difficult 24 .
THE SCOPE OF UKRAINIAN TRADE UNIONISMS
Notably, in early socialism trade unions were
basically imposed on workers: membership
was automatic, trade unionism was
modelled on the monolithic principles,
and workers’ relationships to Seite page 227
the unions were structured along
distributor-consumer principles. Instead
of articulating workers’ concerns (other
than the violation of the law) through trade
unions, workers were disciplined by them.