ABSTRACT
The Danish public sector labour market is an integral part of the Danish welfare state. From this, it follows that the public sector labour market is more of a politically organized system of collective goods-production than a ‘market’ in the strict sense. Still, a process of public sector restructuring has taken place over the past two decades including new public management (NPM) initiatives. The trade unions have taken part in this development and the system of public sector industrial relations has moved into a position where pay issues are being woven into the fabric of central and local administrative policy goals, creating both opportunities and dilemmas for trade unions.
