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Events

Budapest Forum 2026: Strengthening Social Dialogue and Trade Union Capacity Building in Central and Eastern Europe

PROGRAMME

09:30 – 10:00 Registration and coffee for participants

10:00 – 10:30 Opening session

Keynote Speeches

  • Wolfgang Katzian (ÖGB/ETUC President)
  • Oliver Röpke (ACTRAV Director)
  • Róbert Zlati (MASZSZ President, Hungary)
  • Csaba Csóti (SZEF President, Hungary)

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10:30 – 11:45 Setting the scene panel debate

Challenges for Trade Unions in CEE: Social Dialogue, Collective Bargaining and Fair Mobility under Pressure (current challenges and developments in the region)

  • Laszlo Ándor (Secretary General, FEPS)
  • Zoran Mihajlović (President, CATUS, Serbia)
  • Ivana Mihajlović (Deputy Secretary General of USSCG, Montenegro)
  • David Hafner (Member of the EESC, Austria)
  • 11:30 – 11:45 Audience Q+A

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11:45 – 12:00 Coffee break

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12:00 – 13:00 Strategic discussion

Connecting and Strengthening Trade Unions and Civil Society for Democratic Resilience (alliance-building and democratic resilience)

  • Knut Dethlefsen (Director, FES Competence Center on the Future of Work) - TBC
  • Miodrag Milosavljevic (Deputy Director, Open Society Foundations - Western Balkans)
  • Károly György (Vice President, Central European Democracy Forum)
  • Mikael Leyi (Secretary General of solidar) - Online
  • Emira Mešanović (Programme Manager, Civil Society (Civsam) Western Balkans, OPC Belgrade)

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13:00 – 14:00 Lunch

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14:00 – 15:30 Political dialogue

Social Dialogue as Democratic Infrastructure (The role of social dialogue in safeguarding democracy and social cohesion.)

  • Katalin Dudás (State Secretary, Ministry for Social and Family Affairs, Hungary) – TBC
  • Stefan Olsson (Deputy Director-General, Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission) - TBC
  • Ulrike Neufang (Head of Unit for Budgetary Matters, SPC and EAFRD, Austrian Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection)
  • Tea Jarc (Confederal Secretary, ETUC)

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15:30 – 15:45 Coffee break

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15:45 – 16:45 Cooperation lab

Building Alliances for Democratic Resilience

A facilitated networking and matchmaking session designed to translate discussions into practical cooperation opportunities.

The session concludes with a brief harvesting of ideas and identification of potential areas for future cooperation.

16:45 – 17:00 Closing remarks

Key takeaways from the Forum and the Cooperation Lab.

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18:00 Reception followed by networking dinner

Informal continuation of discussions and networking among participants.

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Conference moderator: Bela Galgoczi (ETUI)

The event is organised jointly by CEDF, CETUN and the ILO’s Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV) in Budapest.