This article explores the development of tripartism in east central Europe during the 1980s and 1990s. Focusing on the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland, we examine how the reshaping of national industrial relations in each country since 1989 has been contingent on the patterns of contest between state, employers and labour in each society, patterns which in part have been shaped by the legacy of structures and relationships from the `communist' period. These factors have influenced attempts at creating stable and coherent tripartite systems.
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