Add to ORKGThe article contains a review of trade union rights and competences in the sphere of their influence on the wage policy. It also makes an attempt at determining causes, which accounted for a limited utilization of these rights and competences by trade unions. The negative experience connected with operation of trade unions in the past should allow to create conditions that would allow trade unions to participate effectively in the shaping of the wage policy in the future . The basic condition here is decentralization of management. From the point of view of employees' interests it is also important that trade unions should be equipped with control rights in the sphere of management of the national economy and rationality of undertaken dec...