Search

This paper examines how flexible employment, particularly temporary and part-time employment, affect political support for social policy protection. Although their implications are a priori uncertain, the paper lays out how flexible employment conditions can be expected to generate various kinds of economic insecurity for workers that ought in turn to spur support for social-welfare policies. The paper finds broad support for such expectations in individual-level survey data from 15 EU member states. In particular, part-time employment, temporary employment and their combination tend to increase several measures of an individual's subjective economic insecurity. Further, partly due to such increases, the same measures of flexible employment tend to spur support for social policy assistance targeted at the unemployed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the fastest growing European catchwords at the present time - the ‘European Social Model’ (ESM) - is used to describe the European experience of simultaneously promoting sustainable economic growth and social cohesion. The use of the concept of ESM in academic and political debate is characterized by two main and interconnected features: on the one hand, the usually taken-for-granted assumption of the reality of the concept (the reality called ‘Europe’ becomes a naturally occurring phenomenon); on the other hand, the highly ambiguous and polysemic nature of this concept. A clear definition of what constitutes its essence seems to be lacking in most documents on the subject, while a review of some of the most important of these documents reveals that, insofar as definitions are to be found, they do not necessarily converge. This article aims to discuss the concept of the ESM. It analyses and deconstructs the concept in order to identify the main understandings and the various dimensions of the model. It classifies and discusses the ways in which the ESM is most frequently construed and proposes a new approach to understanding this polysemy. We argue that the different dimensions of the concept can be seen as rhetorical resources intended to legitimize the politically constructed and identity-building project of the EU institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Explores the relationship between the social policy of the European Commission and the progress of the Targeted Socio-Economic Research (TSER). Details of the theoretical concerns with European policy; Synopses of successful projects.

The period since the establishment of the European Economic Community in 1957 has been marked by important socio-demographic changes. The population of the European Union has been ageing, family size has declined, and the family unit has become less institutionalized, placing strains on intergenerational relationships. The combination of economic, political and socio-demographic change has posed threats for social protection systems, economic performance and individual well-being, while also offering opportunities for policymakers in EU member states to review policy options, the efficacy of existing policies and the need for reform. This article examines how socio-demographic change and the social problems associated with it are experienced and perceived in different national contexts, and analyses the policy responses of governments. The outcomes of policy measures formulated and implemented by national governments are reviewed in terms of their possible impact on socio-demographic trends. The article argues that socio-demographic change would appear to have an influence on policy measures, but convincing and consistent evidence is difficult to find in support of claims that policy has a determining effect on socio-demographic trends. In conclusion, the potential for further development of social policy at EU level is considered, both in response to socio-demographic challenges and as a means of managing change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]