FIXED-TERM CONTRACTS, TRADE UNION REPRESENTATION AND EMPLOYER-PAID TRAINING : A Comparative Multilevel Analysis Across 35 European Countries

Abstract: This thesis examines the moderating role of trade union representation in addressing the gap in employer-provided training between permanent workers and workers with fixed-term contracts (FTCs) from a cross-country, comparative perspective. The impact of trade union representation is measured on two different levels: (1) access to trade union representation at the workplace at the individual-level (2) average trade union representation at the country-level, measured as trade union power. The statistical analyses are performed using data from the 2015 European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) and multilevel modelling. Our result suggests that, across the European countries, workers with FTCs receive less employer-paid training than permanent workers. Regarding the impact of trade union representation, statistically significant result is found only at the individual-level, where access to trade union representation increases employer-paid training regardless of employment contract. For the interaction between access to trade union representation at the individual-level and FTC, no significant relationship is found. However, the models with the cross-level interaction between trade union power and FTC indicate that employer-paid training increases for permanent workers only. Our findings suggest that trade union representation at the workplace could operate as an equalizer between permanent workers and FTC workers, while at the country-level, their lobbying effect is beneficial for permanent workers only