EIRO

EIROnline: European Industrial Relations Observatory Online

The European Industrial Relations Observatory (EIRO) is a major project of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions. EIROnline is EIRO's on-line database.

EIRO initiates, collects, stores, disseminates and provides access to information and analysis on developments in industrial relations in the 15 EU Member States, plus Norway, and at European/international level. EIRO is a network, made up of the 16 National Centres and an EU-level Centre, from which information and analysis flows in to a central unit at the European Foundation. This information is then processed and entered into a database, EIROnline, which is made available through the Worldwide Web as the main means of dissemination.

EIRO aims primarily to meet a need in the European Commission and other EU institutions, among national and European-level organisations of the social partners and in governmental organisations, for information and analysis on developments in industrial relations. EIRO seeks to provide this information and analysis in a manner which is comprehensive, authoritative, accurate, up-to-date, contextual, relevant and electronically-based

EIRO’s structure

There is one National Centre (NC) for each of the 15 EU Member States and Norway, plus one Centre covering the overall EU level. Each NC has been selected in a tendering procedure, on the grounds of its professional standing, experience and expertise, its information and technical set-up, and the extent to which it enjoys the confidence of the social partners.

The central unit, based at the Foundation in Dublin is made up of: a management team (responsible for the overall operation of EIRO); an editing unit, made up of a chief editor, plus consultant editors (responsible for the front-line management of EIRO and the network of NCs); a technical unit (responsible for processing information and the creation and maintenance of the database); and an information unit (responsible for information dissemination and enquiry services)

The Directorate of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions has ultimate responsibility to the Foundation’s Administrative Board for the Observatory, as for all Foundation projects.

EIRO has a Steering Committee made up of: one representative from each of the four groups on the Foundation’s Administrative Board (employers, trade unions, governments and the European Commission); representatives of each of main European-level social partner organisations (ETUC, UNICE and CEEP); and the Directorate of the Foundation. The Steering Committee has been closely involved in the establishment of the Observatory and monitors its operations.

EIRO’s audience

EIRO aims to serve the needs of a specific target audience of high-level industrial relations practitioners and policy-makers in EU institutions, trade union and employers’ organisations and government departments. The nature of the information and analysis produced by the Observatory is guided by this target group - ie, the approach is essentially practical, providing factual information and pertinent analysis, which is of use to users in their work. The information and analysis collected and stored through EIRO is also of value to a wider group - notably among other practitioners and in the academic and research communities - and access is provided to this group through the EIROnline website.

EIRO’s information

The basic operation of EIRO is based on a monthly cycle, and on the reporting of events and issues through "in brief" and "feature" items. On top of this, EIRO also conducts comparative research on specific themes.

Each month, the EIRO National Centres submit reports - either "in brief" or "features" - on the most important and topical industrial relations events and issues occurring in their country in that month. In Brief items are short factual articles, providing the relevant facts about a significant event or issue. Features are longer articles. As with in brief items, features set out the main factual elements of the events and issues in question, though the greater length means that more detail can be included. Features also include a commentary, providing an assessment of the event/issue/activity in question. Features cover the most significant industrial relations developments, activities and issues, and those which can benefit most from the greater degree of analysis and background which the longer format allows.

EIRO is an international and comparative project, and its viewpoint is not restricted to individual countries. As well as the comparative theme running through all EIRO’s work, EIRO also conducts comparative studies. At regular intervals, National Centres submit information on a specific theme, and its treatment in their country. The information provided by the NCs - sometimes supplemented with relevant material from other Foundation research projects - is used to draw up a comparative overview of the treatment of the theme in question across the EU, and a series of national reports on the subject in a uniform format.

EIRO's products and services

EIROnline contains all in brief, feature and comparative records submitted by the National Centres, edited technically and for content into a uniform format and style. The database thus constitutes a unique information resource on industrial relations in Europe, providing comprehensive coverage of all the most significant events and issues, along with comparative overviews. EIROnline is publicly available on the Worldwide Web

EIRO issues a regular publication, EIRObserver, both on paper and in electronic PDF format. EIRObserver currently appears every two months and contains an edited selection of in brief and feature items submitted for the database. At regular intervals, EIRObserver also contains "comparative supplements", based on the comparative studies conducted by EIRO.

At present, all electronic and printed publications are available in the English language only.