Nowadays the Hungarian trade union movement is fragmented. People cannot understand their activity because there are lot of persona and interests. The Hungarian trade union movement draws an analogy to a multi-level system. The six trade union confederations have the biggest media because they work in the national reconciliation. So they can stand up for a case easily. But this system causes that these organizations can be hacked against each other by political motivation. So the power of the worker’s interest reconciliation decreased.
In this situation there is only one real answer, which was given by the Autonomous Trade Union Confederation (ASZSZ), the National Confederation of Hungarian Trade Unions (MSZOSZ) and the Forum for the Co-operation of Trade Unions (SZEF). They want to make unification, and this change will result qualitative andquantitativechanges. The three confederations announced it on Work Day and if it is achieved it will be the biggest Hungarian worker’s interest reconciliation alliance.
Less thanone-third (31%) of the population heard about the notification. This fact shows that, the trade unions have a narrow space in media, because of big, and hysterical political fight.
A 77% of respondents said they agree with the unification of the confederations. The absolute majority (54%) thinks “a planning in unification will make the biggest trade union and the government will be forcedto negotiate”. However, there are lot of people who are sceptical in this question. A quarter of the respondents think this organization change will not take a new thing in the interest reconciliation because the government selects among trade unions on a political basis. The support of assumption is quite significant,the loyalty to the government will decide who will negotiate with the government about the topics of labour market. Twenty-one percent of respondents, who perhaps have more sympathy with the work of the government, think this unification will not change, because the government treats the trade unions equally, so they must not change this habit.
On the Labour Day the confederations stated: they want to keep a good distance from political parties. The interest reconciliation decreased, because the government and the political parties would like a closer contact with the trade unions than it is actually. This situation causes a permanent headwind and suspicion against the organizations of work’s interest reconciliation. As a result consequently an 80% of respondents said, the new confederation will not make an alliance with the parties.
The representative telephones surveys are made by 1000 answers in 4-8 May 2013.