Fundamental rights related to social partners

Participants agreed that the Danish social model was strong and well-functioning. In this model,
social partners decided on collective agreements, which many times were the basis for tripartite
agreements, which were then turned into law. The span of collective bargaining was wide, as was the
density of union representation, although there could be variations of representation according to
sectors. Overall, social dialogue was considered as efficient to safeguard social achievements like the
level of salaries.

Participants mentioned that the authorities generally did not interfere with social dialogue and that the
ministries were easily accessible, both formally and informally. The government's involvement of
social partners in the context of the COVID-19 crisis was seen as very efficient, leading to tripartite
agreements to address the situation. The employers' side acknowledged that business had suffered
because of the crisis and that compensation schemes were put in place, adding that businesses did not
intend to depend on public funding beyond the crisis.

A particular area of concern was equality of pay and treatment, in particular of non-Danish workers
coming from the EU. A participant pointed to social dumping and undeclared work in sectors like
construction, agriculture and the hotel trade. In the views of a trade union representative, the situation
of foreign workers was particularly complicated in situations combining low density of collective
agreement, low density of companies, and a low knowledge of the Danish model. Platform work was
considered as another challenging area. Participants considered that a combination of regulation,
dialogue, and responsibility of social partners was necessary to address these challenges. A participant
also mentioned the government executive order to cull minks in the context of the COVID-19
response. This raised issues for farmers but they were confident proper remedies and compensation
were to be found.