Between industrial and employment relations – the practical and academic implications of changing labour markets

Abstract

Labour markets and industrial relations have changed during the last couple of decades. In a number of countries, the traditional systems of collective bargaining have been challenged by trends toward decentralisation, individualisation and deinstitutionalisation at the labour market. This has had both practical and theoretical implications for the industrial relations field. In the article we identify different types of theoretical discourses about how to understand and conceptualise the practical changes in industrial relations. We discuss its implication for the academic discussions about employment relations versus industrial relations.