The role of employers' associations

The present paper sheds light on and reflects on the role of employers’ associations (EAs) in contemporary political economies. The starting point is the supposed overall decline of social institutions that regulate market economies and the consequent weakening of incentives to be involved in employees’ and employers’ organizations. To test this hypothesis, we first review theories that explain why and how employers are interested in joining collective organizations. Theories of collective action and neo-institutionalism outline the main factors that influence employers’ decisions to act collectively and the way these same factors are shaped by recent trends in contemporary political economies (e.g., globalization, deregulation, the weakening of social dialogue institutions). In the second part of the paper, we provide empirical evidence of global trends in EAs. In the third part, we critically reflect on the possible interpretations of the unexpected resilience of EAs.