Charting the contours of employment relations in foreign-owned MNCs: survey evidence from the Republic of Ireland

Abstract

This paper reports findings from the first large-scale representative survey of employment practices in multinational companies (MNCs) in Ireland. Using data from some 260 MNCs, it investigates the contention that foreign and Irish-owned MNCs differ in their approach to employment relations (ER). The paper finds evidence that Irish, UK and ‘rest of Europe’ MNCs are more likely to recognise trade unions, whereas US MNCs are the least likely to do so. More strikingly there is a growing trend of union avoidance amongst unionised companies through the establishment of new non-union sites. Differences between foreign and Irish-owned MNCs are also apparent. Overall, the evidence supports the view that a new orthodoxy is emerging in Irish ER whereby foreign-owned MNCs are introducing home country practices which are at odds with the more traditional pattern existing in Irish-owned MNCs.