The Politics of the European Minimum Wage: Overcoming Ideological, Territorial and Institutional Conflicts in the EU Multi‐level Arena

Until recently, the idea of a European minimum wage (EMW) policy had never taken concrete shape, due to the heterogeneity of national wage‐setting and collective bargaining institutions, uncertain EU competence on the matter, and widespread scepticism amongst political actors. In 2022, however, the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of common market studies 2024-05, Vol.62 (3), p.725-743
Main Authors: Natili, Marcello, Ronchi, Stefano
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Coalitions
Collective bargaining
European minimum wage
Heterogeneity
Minimum wage
News media
Ordination
Policy making
Politics
Skepticism
Social Europe
von der Leyen Commission
Wage determination
wage‐setting
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Summary:Until recently, the idea of a European minimum wage (EMW) policy had never taken concrete shape, due to the heterogeneity of national wage‐setting and collective bargaining institutions, uncertain EU competence on the matter, and widespread scepticism amongst political actors. In 2022, however, the EU adopted a directive on adequate minimum wages. How did this make it to the EU agenda, despite the many political, territorial and institutional tensions? What coalitions supported and opposed it? Based on a reconstruction of the policy process substantiated by an analysis of news media data and 14 interviews, this article investigates the multi‐level politics of the EMW. It shows that, despite enduring ‘euro‐social scepticism’ in northern Europe, the emergence of pro‐minimum wage coalitions in key member states and the increase of party‐competition dynamics at the EU level were crucial in overcoming the lines of conflict that had long hindered EU initiatives on minimum wage co‐ordination.
ISSN:0021-9886
1468-5965
DOI:10.1111/jcms.13526