ABSTRACT
For the purpose of the study of trade union cooperation in the European multi-level system of labor relations, several basic sociological assumptions will be established as follows from a Pragmatist perspective. Pragmatist social theory emerged in the United States at the end of the nineteenth century. It became one of the most influential philosophical movements of its time. A Pragmatist approach accordingly focuses on processes of common problem definition with a certain population of actors, in the course of which action repertoires can further develop, with a view to both purposes and means. The discussion in the social sciences with organizations as social units with membership rules, fixed external boundaries, and goals has a long tradition in the field. For trade unions, the challenge in developing common political positions, under the conditions of institutional heterogeneity within the EU, lies in being able to handle contradictory and apparently incompatible demands in a solution-oriented manner.
