Variations and (a)symmetries in trust between employees and employers in Europe: Some (not so) well-known stylized facts

Abstract

I analyse the incidence of trust between employee representatives and management at the firm level in EU member states. Most previous analyses focus primarily on employees’ trust in the employer, but I consider both sides. The analysis confirms, but generalizes, some known stylized facts such as that trust is relatively high in Scandinavian countries but relatively low in Mediterranean countries. My analysis also reveals a number of novel stylized facts, including a high degree of variability in Central and Eastern Europe. Furthermore, strong mutual trust is very rare throughout Europe and the trust relationship is systematically asymmetric, as employers’ trust in the employee side is systematically higher than the reverse relationship.