The evolution of markets has entered a new phase, with growth in competition challenging labor market institutions, triggering political realignments and shifting firm-level arrangements worldwide. This panel probes how labor agents at different nodes of the European economy have experimented with adaptation responses to these new realities. Contrasting developments in healthcare with national-level developments, the panel clarifies which strategies they employed to engage with shifting ideas, interests and institutions. Scholars’ contributions also illuminate how their efforts have shaped innovations in the governance of work.