An employers' organization, employers' association or employers' federation is an association of employers. A trade union

Trade union

A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...

, which organizes employees is the opposite of an employers' organization. The role and position of an employers' organization differs from country to country, dependent on the economic system

Economic system

An economic system is the combination of the various agencies, entities that provide the economic structure that defines the social community. These agencies are joined by lines of trade and exchange along which goods, money etc. are continuously flowing. An example of such a system for a closed...

 of a country.

In countries with a pluralist or anglo-saxon economic system

Anglo-Saxon economy

An Anglo-Saxon economy or Anglo-Saxon capitalism is a capitalist macroeconomic model in which levels of regulation and taxes are low, and government provides relatively fewer services.-Origins of the...

 (such as the United Kingdom

Economy of the United Kingdom

The economy of the United Kingdom is the sixth-largest national economy in the world measured by nominal GDP and seventh-largest measured by purchasing power parity , and the third-largest in Europe measured by nominal GDP and second-largest measured by PPP...

 and the United States

Economy of the United States

The economy of the United States is the world's largest national economy. Its nominal GDP was estimated to be nearly $14.5 trillion in 2010, approximately a quarter of nominal global GDP. The European Union has a larger collective economy, but is not a single nation...

), where there is no institutionalized cooperation between employers' organizations, trade unions and government, an employers' organization is an interest group or advocacy group

Advocacy group

Advocacy groups use various forms of advocacy to influence public opinion and/or policy; they have played and continue to play an important part in the development of political and social systems...

 that through lobbying

Lobbying

Lobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...

 tries to influence government policy. In these countries, employers' organizations tend to be weak, with many of their functions taken over by industry trade group

Industry trade group

A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association or sector association, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry...

s, which are basically public relations

Public relations

Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....

 organizations.

In countries with a social market economy

Social market economy

The social market economy is the main economic model used in West Germany after World War II. It is based on the economic philosophy of Ordoliberalism from the Freiburg School...

, such as Austria

Economy of Austria

Austria is one of the 12 richest countries in the world in terms of GDP per capita, has a well-developed social market economy, and a high standard of living. Until the 1980s, many of Austria's largest industry firms were nationalised; in recent years, however, privatisation has reduced state...

, Sweden

Economy of Sweden

The economy of Sweden is a developed diverse economy, aided by timber, hydropower and iron ore. These constitute the resource base of an economy oriented toward foreign trade...

 and the Netherlands

Economy of the Netherlands

On the Index of Economic Freedom, the Netherlands is the 13th most laissez-faire capitalist economy out of 157 surveyed countries. At the time of writing the Netherlands is the 16th largest economy of the world. Between 1998 and 2000 annual economic growth averaged nearly 4%, well above the...

, the employers' organizations are part of a system of institutionalized deliberation, together with government and the trade unions. In tri-partite bargaining the so-called social partners

Social partners

The social partners are the trade unions and the employers engaged in social dialogue. The idea of social partnership is strongly founded in many European models of industrial relations and is now adopted across the European Union. At the European interprofessional level, the social partners are...

 strike agreements on issues like price level

Price level

A price level is a hypothetical measure of overall prices for some set of goods and services, in a given region during a given interval, normalized relative to some base set...

s, wage increase

Wage

A wage is a compensation, usually financial, received by workers in exchange for their labor.Compensation in terms of wages is given to workers and compensation in terms of salary is given to employees...

s, tax rates and pension entitlement

Pension

In general, a pension is an arrangement to provide people with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income from employment. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum.The terms retirement...

s. In these countries collective bargaining

Collective bargaining

Collective bargaining is a process of negotiations between employers and the representatives of a unit of employees aimed at reaching agreements that regulate working conditions...

is often done on a national level not between one corporation and one union, but national employers' organizations and national trade unions.