The Three Monkeys website is carrying a very interesting article by Robert Looby on the substance of the Lisbon Treaty, which he argues, just happens to be the same substance as the failed EU Constitution. He looks at a number or elements of the treaty, including its opaqueness, its attempt to obfuscate the neo-liberalism inherent in the Constitution, and its anti-trades union and anti-workers' rights provisions.
"In other words: it is illegal to require of subcontractors that they adhere to collectively bargained wages. The implications of this should be obvious. A country where wages are low (e.g. Poland) can send employees to work in one where wages are high (e.g. Ireland) and pay them less than the industry agreed rate. It is because of the Rüffert case that the 45,000 strong Technical, Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU) in Ireland called for a 'no' vote, though there is also concern over the Laval and the Viking cases, both of which involve the undercutting of union rates. (http://www.teeu.ie/news/show.asp?id=219) It would seem that the obligation to provide free and undistorted markets trumps union rights."
Read the article in full here.
Read other Articles by Robert Looby here.