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Yugoslavia Trade Unions
In the 1980s, membership in trade unions was officially
voluntary, but most workers were members and had dues deducted
directly from their pay. Trade union officials usually were LCY
members and, because the self-management system had no evident
division between employers and employees, officials had
relatively little responsibility. Their one official function was
to nominate members of workers' councils
(see Trade Unions
, ch.
4).
Before 1990, strikes, or "work stoppages" as they were
euphemistically called, officially were neither legal nor
illegal. The idea of a strike in a self-management system was
theoretically contradictory, because technically workers would be
striking against themselves. Hence, Yugoslav work stoppages took
the form of political protest against the system rather than
conflict between employer and employees. The reforms introduced
in January 1990 officially declared the workers' right to strike.
Strikes were relatively rare until the late 1970s, when
soaring inflation and falling personal incomes generated
widespread discontent. In 1987, 1988, and 1989, governmentimposed income freezes set off waves of major strikes, each
lasting several weeks. In the first nine months of 1987 alone,
1,000 strikes were called, involving over 150,000 workers. The
1989 strikes involved over 900,000 workers. Demands almost always
included higher pay and often the replacement of management as
well.
Traditionally trade union officials opposed strikes; but in
the late 1980s they modified this stand. In 1985 some union
leaders broke tradition by suggesting that when workers' demands
were justified and no other solution existed, the trade union
should take the lead in organizing a strike. As of early 1990, no
union had taken such action, however, and many union officials
remained on record as opposing strikes.
Data as of December 1990
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