Interests groups from Eastern Europe and their lobbying activities on EU legislation are seldom captured by empirical studies. To contribute to the literature, this article analyses the integration of trade unions from the new Member States into EU governance structures, their lobbying activities and access points. Trade unions were chosen as they play historically and politically an important role in the new Member States. The paper is based on a quantitative questionnaire enriched with complementary guided qualitative interviews. The data show that trade unions from the new Member States are underrepresented at the EU level and do not engage substantially in lobbying on EU legislation. Due to structural weaknesses and lacks of resources, they seldom gain direct access to EU institutions. Hence, this article is of relevance for the literature on interest groups in EU governance and on the democratic deficit of the EU.
