Service Liberalization in the Enlarged EU: A Race to the Bottom or the Emergence of Transnational Political Conflict?

Abstract: Concerns that eastward enlargement will spur a race to the bottom in wages and social protection figured prominently in two cases before the ECJ: Laval and Viking. Each case considered whether industrial action to uphold collective bargaining agreements violate single market laws. Government observations divided between old and new Member States, with the former supporting the unions' position and the latter the employers'. With the ECJ ultimately ruling with the employers and against the expressed preferences of most old Member States and unions, the rulings furthered the cause of liberalization in the enlarged EU, but also mobilized political opposition.