Origins and Significance of the Community and Voluntary Pillar in Irish Social Partnership

Abstract

The Irish social partnership is comparatively unusual in the way that corporatist bargaining also accommodates community and voluntary sector organisations. This paper examines the origins and significance of the Community/Voluntary Pillar (CVP) in relation to a fiscal and social crisis and a crisis of legitimacy for the political elite. It identifies some key driving forces in the pillar and explores the case of one in particular – the Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed (INOU). While sceptical of accounts that are dismissive of the Pillar, the paper acknowledges that its influence has waned since the fiscal and unemployment crises have subsided.