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The article analyses industrial relations change in the six largest EU countries since 1992 in relation to increased internationalization pressures. Based on qualitative and quantitative analysis, it distinguishes between associational and state governance, and detects that despite a predominant, but not universal, trend of weakening trade unions and collective bargaining, no overall liberalization has occurred in the political regulation of employment (employment policies, welfare state, labour law, state support to collective bargaining, public sector). Rather than converging towards neoliberalism, industrial relations emerge as more politically contingent and dependent on multiple forms of power, which are affected by internationalization in different ways.

Traditional comparative typologies of national trade union models, whether based on sociological functionalism or on institutionalism, have a number of limitations that are becoming ever more apparent. They exaggerate the internal coherence, homogeneity and continuity of union types; they neglect the role of cross-border influences, imitation, and linkages; they are still unable to classify unions in post-communist countries. Some typologies have the additional limit of ethnocentrism. This article defends the empirical and theoretical utility of taxonomy, at least when the level of abstraction is clear. However, typologies must be revisited in order to address the existing four limitations. An alternative, transnational typology is suggested, which analytically distinguishes social action from institutions. The resulting "types" point to some unexpected cross-national similarities and intra-national diversity, and for their dynamism deserve the label of "styles" rather than "models". Given some structural differences in collective action and association behaviour between small and large countries, the typology focuses only, at this stage, on the six largest countries in the "enlarged" EU: Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain and Poland.

Is the EU enlargement the success EU institutions proclaim? Based on fifteen years of fieldwork research across Central and Eastern Europe and on migrants in the UK and Germany, this book provides a less glittering answer. The EU has betrayed hopes of social cohesion: social regulations have been forgotten, multinationals use threats of relocations, and workers, left without institutional channels to voice their concerns, have reacted by leaving their countries en masse. Yet migration, for many, increases social vulnerability.Drawing on Hirschman’s concepts of ‘Exit’ and ‘Voice’, the book traces the origins of such failures in the management of EU enlargement as a pure economic and market-creating exercise, neglecting the inherently political nature of labour relations. The reinforcement of market mechanisms without political counterbalances has resulted in an increase in opportunistic ‘exit’ behaviour by both employers and employees, and thereby in a worsening quality of democracy, at workplace, national and European levels. As a result of this process, the EU has become more similar to the North American Free Trade Agreement between USA, Canada and Mexico, where social rights are marginalized and economic integration does not translate into better development.

Attitudes of European citizens towards immigrants are restrictive. Restrictive attitudes are related to the unemployment rate and the risk of poverty as well as competition for jobs and welfare resources. National policies of social protection help reduce hostility to immigration because it reduces the risk of poverty and social inequality. However, ethnic and racial heterogeneity hamper "egalitarian commitment" essential for the sustainability of the welfare state. Strong unions and social protection policies contribute to the integration of immigrants (Sweden and Norway). By contrast, weak unions, social inequalities, unemployment, the risk of poverty and weak social protection contribute to the development of negative attitudes towards immigration (Greece, Hungary). The future sustainability of welfare depends on the participation of immigration as a political force.

The article addresses the research question of why in some sectors industrial relations display strong cross-national similarities across the European Union, while in other sectors they do not. In line with classic interpretations of the development of industrial relations systems, it tests the hypothesis that a sector's economic internationalisation leads to internationally more similar industrial relations, in comparison to sectors where product and labour markets are mainly national. An analysis of industrial relations characteristics in 9 sectors in all member states of the European Union confirms the hypothesis. The article concludes that transnational convergence in industrial relations is sector specific and therefore comparative industrial relations studies require a renewed focus on the sector level. © Rainer Hampp Verlag.

This chapter will analyse the relationship between women and trade unions in Italy. That relationship is seen as particularly ambiguous, even more so than in other countries. On the one hand, the distinctive egalitarian policy of the Italian unions and the unique alliance they formed with the feminist movement served women’s interests for a time and to an extent. On the other hand, the unions as organisations have remained rooted in basically male social, cultural and organisational models and they find it increasingly difficult to cope with the emerging issues of diversity (an example being the enduring diffidence towards potentially women-friendly atypical and part-time jobs).

Histochemical observations on the iron content (hemosiderin) within sections of Brunner's glands in duodenal biopsies showed that practically no iron is contained within the glands of healthy persons. In contrast, in cases of marked transfusional hemosiderosis, the cuboidal cells of the same glands showed a high hemosiderin content. In the most severe cases, 100% of the tubules had a positive reaction to Perls's test. The intensity of the iron-positive reaction within the duodenal Brunner glands varied according to the severity of hemosiderosis. These results are in agreement with the interpretation that in hemosiderosis the desquamation of iron-loaded epithelial cells of Brunner's glands contributes to the removal of iron from the body. The cells have this function in common with the epithelium of other mucus-secreting glands and with macrophages.

The literature on corporatism sees exogenous threats as opportunities for establishing interclass alliances. This article asks if this has been the case with the COVID-19 pandemic, looking at whether social dialogue practices and functions have changed in the three largest EU countries compared with the ‘crisis corporatism’ and ‘austerity corporatism’ that accompanied the Great Financial Crisis of 2008–2009 and the eurozone crisis of 2010–2012. It concludes that continuity prevails in terms of the forms and limitations of concerted solutions, which remain country-specific. However, a crisis focused on health issues has entailed a shift in the agenda from labour costs to production issues, providing trade unions with discursive resources opening up opportunities to move from the concession bargaining of previous decades to more assertive roles. Die Fachliteratur zum Korporatismus sieht in exogenen Bedrohungen eine Chance für die Bildung klassenübergreifender Bündnisse. Der vorliegende Artikel geht der Frage nach, ob dies auch vor dem Hintergrund der COVID-19-Pandemie der Fall war, und untersucht, ob sich die Praxis und die Funktionen des sozialen Dialoges in den drei größten EU-Ländern im Vergleich zu dem „Krisenkorporatismus“ und „Austeritätskorporatismus“ verändert haben, die die Finanzkrise 2008-2009 und die Krise der Eurozone 2010-2012 begleiteten. Das Autorenteam kommt zu dem Schluss, dass hinsichtlich der Ausgestaltung und der Begrenzungen konzertierter Lösungen, die weiterhin länderspezifisch bleiben, nach wie vor Kontinuität herrscht. Diese in erster Linie durch Gesundheitsthemen bestimmte Krise hat jedoch dafür gesorgt, dass nicht mehr die Arbeitskosten die Agenda bestimmen, sondern Produktionsprobleme. Dadurch haben die Gewerkschaften im Diskurs Ressourcen mobilisieren und die Gelegenheit nutzen können, von den Zugeständnissen vergangener Jahrzehnte zu einer durchsetzungsstärkeren Rolle überzugehen. La littérature sur le corporatisme considère que les menaces exogènes constituent autant d'opportunités pour établir des alliances interclasses. Cet article se demande si tel a été le cas avec la pandémie de la COVID-19, en examinant si, dans les trois plus grands pays de l'UE, les pratiques et les fonctions du dialogue social ont changé par rapport au " corporatisme de crise " et au " corporatisme d'austérité " qui avaient respectivement accompagné la grande crise financière de 2008-2009 et la crise de la zone euro de 2010-2012. L’article conclut que la continuité prévaut quant aux formes et aux limites des solutions concertées, qui restent spécifiques à chaque pays. Cependant, le fait que la crise soit axée sur des questions de santé a entraîné un déplacement des préoccupations : la question des coûts de main-d’œuvre a fait place aux problèmes de production, ce qui a offert aux syndicats des arguments pour sortir des négociations de concession que l’on a connues lors des décennies précédentes, au profit de rôles plus affirmés. Introduction: crisis corporatism in times of pandemic Insights from the literature: social dialogue functions, preconditions and outputs in times of crisis Comparative discussion and conclusions References

This article contributes to the emerging studies of populist radical right parties’ social policies by looking at two cases, Italy and Poland, where such parties have been in office without the constraint of mainstream pro-market coalition partners. The comparison of two cases with different historical/institutional paths and economic conditions shows how important high-visibility, high-expenditure social policies can be for populist radical right parties (PRRPs) once in government. More specifically, the analysis of pension and family policies reveals important parallels in the revamping of familialistic aspects of the welfare state, despite demographic and economic pressures. The findings demonstrate that social policy is more important and less focussed on welfare chauvinism than assumed by the literature on PRRPs. This is explained by PRRPs’ electoral expansion strategy towards more deprived groups, which in countries with a strong conservative Catholic presence is achieved through ideological repertoire expansion towards familialism, which can address both the material and cultural interests of the new electorate.

Trade unions have been charged with neglecting labour market ‘outsiders’, while alternative actors have emerged to represent these. In response, unions have stepped up their claim to be representative of all workers, without distinction. We review the theoretical and policy debates on this issue, and argue that representation as such has been under-theorized. We draw on Saward’s concept of ‘representative claims’ to analyse the different grounds for competing assertions of representativeness. We identify four main forms of claims, and illustrate these with empirical examples. We conclude that these different claims are mutually reinforcing in stimulating attention to the outsiders, and in their interaction with institutional settings, they have a performative effect in defining new social actors. Trade unions have been charged with neglecting labour market ‘outsiders’, while alternative actors have emerged to represent these. In response, unions have stepped up their claim to be representative of all workers, without distinction. We review the theoretical and policy debates on this issue, and argue that representation as such has been under-theorized. We draw on Saward’s concept of ‘representative claims’ to analyse the different grounds for competing assertions of representativeness. We identify four main forms of claims, and illustrate these with empirical examples. We conclude that these different claims are mutually reinforcing in stimulating attention to the outsiders, and in their interaction with institutional settings, they have a performative effect in defining new social actors.

After some promise in the 1990s, European unions have grown increasingly disillusioned with regard to the results of EU social policy and EU social dialogue. The paper analyses the extent and reasons of this disillusion by looking at the impact on social dialogue of the Active Inclusion Recommendation launched by the European Commission at the outset of the economic crisis in 2008. The Recommendation led to a tripartite framework agreement at the EU level in 2010 (the only such agreement in a decade), which was then to be implemented at national and regional levels. With a multilevel governance approach, the paper looks at the extent to which social dialogue on Active Inclusion at the EU level, in six EU countries (France, Italy, Poland, Spain, Sweden, and the UK) and six regions (Rhône-Alpes, Lombardy, Lower Silesia, Catalonia, West Sweden and Greater Manchester) within those countries was somehow revitalised. The analysis, looking at both top-down and bottom-up processes and based on documentary analysis and interviews, shows that the initiative displays ambiguities similar to those of typical composite EU principles, such as famously the case of ‘flexicurity’. The multilevel governance of the EU, including the interaction between ‘soft’ employment policies and evolving ‘hard’ Eurogovernance tools, and with poor horizontal and vertical coordination, resulted in multiple distortions of the principle and, over time, to frustration. Unions’ engagement varies by level, country and region, reflecting both traditional national approaches and the local perception of ‘active inclusion’ as an opportunity. Although trade unions were more welcoming of ‘active inclusion’ than they had been for flexicurity, similar related threats and opportunities led to modest achievements and a gradual fading of the idea at the European and national levels, with some more opportunities however at the regional level. The paper concludes that, if trade unions want to engage with the idea of a European Social Model and with Eurogovernance, they could develop stronger networks among regional organisations.

Internationalization, trade union decline, enforcement problems and rising self-employment all strain the effectiveness of collective wage bargaining arrangements in northern European construction. We examine Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and the UK, and show that these strains have pushed trade unions to seek assistance from the state to stabilize wage regulation, but with results that vary according to employer strategies and the power balances between the actors. While Denmark and the UK have barely introduced any state support, Norway has followed the Netherlands and Germany in introducing legal mechanisms for extension of collectively agreed minimum wage terms. The country studies suggest that state assistance alleviates some of the strain, but does not reverse the trends, and the comparison indicates that both institutional innovation and reorganization may be required if wage bargaining is not to drift into different functions.

The frequent claim that employment relations have become irrelevant is not new: it has been cyclically repeated over the last 40 years. What recent times have provided is critical cases where employment relations have been actively marginalised in the pursuit of an ideal neoclassic labour market: new market economies of Central Eastern Europe, recent reforms in crisis countries in Southern Europe and global competition on labour costs. The disastrous effects of these experiments confirm, in fact, the relevance of employment relations. © Australian Labour and Employment Relations Association (ALERA), SAGE Publications Ltd, Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC.

This is a book that starts by quoting the ‘pioneering’ definition of trade unions by Sidney and Beatrice Webb of 1894, and ends with the sentence ‘if European trade unions are to survive …’ In the ...

This article describes the evolution of social dialogue and collective bargaining in Poland between 2008 and 2012, arguing that the effects of the crisis have been asymmetrical in two ways. First, while Poland is the only EU country to have avoided recession in macroeconomic terms, the crisis has actually disproportionately affected labour through higher unemployment and worsening employment conditions. Secondly, in a decentralized system like the Polish one, effects of the crisis have differed by sector. Sectors exposed to international competition such as the automotive and steel sectors have suffered from job losses and major restructuring, while services and construction have withstood better. While social dialogue has been temporarily re-legitimized during the crisis, it plays only a sporadic role. © 2013, SAGE Publications. All rights reserved.

The article addresses the issue of multi-national employers' effects on employment practices and industrial relations through the findings of 12 case studies of multi-nationals in the Czech Republic, in the automotive and finance sectors. It is found that in the automotive sector, where product markets are international, there is more transnational organizational co-ordination, but companies avoid transferring their employee participation practices, preferring unilateral management and leading to vertical segmentation between Western and Eastern European sites. In finance, companies from liberal market economies transfer sophisticated direct participation practices, also for anti-union purposes, as firm-specific advantages. The industrial relations outcome shows enduring gaps with Western European practices. © The Author(s) 2013.

The article provides a conceptualization of the link between recent migration flows and labour market uncertainty through the analysis of a critical example, the construction sector (characterized by economic volatility, worker mobility, employment insecurity, safety risk) in the UK and Spain (countries with large immigration, flexible labour markets and volatile construction sectors). Transnational labour mobility can be seen as a structural response to recent European dilemmas over how to combine flexibility and security, through the creation of a hyper-flexible buffer of migrant workers who, being disposable in case of downturn, can carry most of the uncertainty burden without causing markets and volatile construction sectors). Transnational labour mobility can be seen as a structural response to recent European dilemmas over how to combine flexibility and security, through the creation of a hyper-flexible buffer of migrant workers who, being disposable in case of downturn, can carry most of the uncertainty burden without causing political problems. This raises two issues: the social sustainability of such segmentation, in particular with regard to occupational health and safety; and the role organized labour can have, in particular in organizing such workers. The issues are analysed through labour market statistics and interviews with unionists, migrant organization representatives, employers and employment policy officers in both countries. © Australian Labour and Employment Relations Association (ALERA), SAGE Publications Ltd, Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC.

Relocations within an enlarged Europe are often portrayed as an unavoidable destiny or irresistible threat for workers. The article outlines a number of contingent factors which determine how serious are the threats and how feasible is an effective union response. Such factors are then tested through in-depth case studies of 12 plants in the automotive components sector (where cross-border competition is particularly strong), showing how varied can be the scenarios for industrial relations in multinational companies. © The Author(s), 2009.

\ud This article addresses the claim, particularly popular in the 2000s and implicitly resting on a segmentation view of the labour market, that a flexible labour market-driven immigration policy (within the EU as well as from outside), often associated to a ‘Canadian model’, would respond to the economic needs of continental European countries.\ud \ud A comparative historical approach is applied, including analysis of historical series of unemployment and migration data and a qualitative analysis of secondary sources on Germany, Spain and Canada, selected as best representatives of different labour market and immigration regimes. The research asks to what extent, and how, immigration has been used as a ‘buffer’ for labour market uncertainty.\ud \ud Against ideas of a ‘Canadian’ model advertised in Europe (e.g. Germany), the historical and quantitative analysis shows that Canada itself has moved from short-term labour market-driven immigration policies to more long-term approaches. In fact, there has been a stronger labour market-migration link in Spain, but not without problems,\ud \ud The article is a small-N comparison of critical cases, that is most different labour market models. Major demographic and geographic differences exist between the three countries, which raises even more scepticism about the suitability of a Canadian model in Europe.\ud \ud The policy implications are centred on the detected paradox of labour market-driven immigration policies: in order to be sustainable, they need to have a long-term orientation and involve some degree of social integration policies.\ud \ud The article adds to comparative studies of migration policies through a stronger link to labour market analysis and in particular issues of uncertainty and segmentation.

The influx of Polish workers into the UK requires a renewal of migration theories and presents important empirical puzzles. Both problems stem from the specificity of this migration wave, which does not correspond to classical models. The inadequacy of classical migration theories is demonstrated by the inaccuracy of forecasts from before 2004. The optimistic' forecasts (e.g. Boeri and Brücker 2001) foresaw an influx many times smaller than the actual one. But the pessimistic' forecasts were wrong when expecting a movement towards social benefits (so-called social raids'). The paper shows how the influx of Polish workers is different from previous migration waves: it is, at least in the intention, short-term, and includes a high share of young women. In addition, these workers maintain strong contacts and networks with their home country (frequent travel, new communication technologies), often compare living conditions from different European countries, and show an unforeseen willingness to join local trade unions. The issue is therefore if these people qualify for the definition of (classic) migrants', or of transnational migrants' (Pries 2003) or even of cosmopolitans' (Cohen 2004)? In this way they could, for instance, combine Polish, British, and generally European values on work and social customs. The paper combines the Worker Registration Scheme data with early findings from research (interviews, case studies) on Poles in the West Midlands. This region has the largest number of new Polish migrants in the UK (17% of the total), together with numerous old' Polish communities. This case is particularly interesting because in this region the share of Poles working through temporary agency employment is the highest (57%). Experiences of both mobilisation and segregation confirm the ambivalent and dynamic nature of this migration wave. © 2007 Akadémiai Kiadó.

Fears of social dumping in the enlarged EU have raised the question of who can defend employees in the new member states. This article addresses the issue through case study research on US and German-based multinationals operating in the automotive sector in Poland, Hungary and Slovenia. The evidence shows how trade unions and industrial relations institutions affect investors in different ways country-by-country, with some unexpected effects on the implementation of flexible employment practices by the investors. Foreign-owned enterprises witness cases of union revitalisation, breaking the "path-dependency" of post-communist unions, in spite of frequent employer hostility. Bottom-up factors such as production changes and local labour market trends are frequently found behind revitalisation, although foreign factors such as home-country models or international union solidarity occasionally also play a role. Such revitalisation, however, being company-based, raises issues on the capacity of trade unions to combine core worker representation with the defence of workers in the society as a whole.

This article addresses the questions of the extent to which, and the reasons why, western European trade unions may have privileged the protection of ‘insiders’ over that of ‘outsiders’. Temporary agency workers, among whom migrant workers are over-represented, are taken as a test case of ‘outsiders’. The findings from a comparison of Belgian and German multinational plants show that collective agreements have allowed a protection gap between permanent and agency workers to emerge in Germany, but not in Belgium. However, the weaker protection in Germany depends less on an explicit union choice for insiders than on the weakening of the institutional environment for union representation and collective bargaining. The conclusion suggests that European unions are increasingly trying to defend the outsiders, but meet institutional obstacles that vary by country.

Immigration as a solution to staff and skill shortages in the health system is increasingly on the agenda in the European Union. This article highlights the related social and policy dilemmas by comparing a new destination country with an old destination country: Spain and the United Kingdom. After describing the challenges met by the United Kingdom, we ask how well-prepared Spain is to face the same issues. In particular, attention is paid to the occupational mobility of health workers after entry and to how immigration as a staffing solution poses new political and social challenges. Through a review of background information regarding the immigration of health workers in the two countries and the preliminary analysis of 15 exploratory interviews, we aim to identify the primary trends and key concerns for future analysis. Although our interviews only allow us to draw tentative conclusions, they do highlight emerging issues to be explored in the near future. Our conclusions show that many of the problems traditionally encountered in the United Kingdom are now emerging in Spain, suggesting scope for further collaboration among government, employers, and other stakeholders across the European Union.

The article critically discusses the view that the new EU member states, due to their weakly organized industrial relations, provide a permissive environment allowing multinational companies to unilaterally implement their human resource management strategies. After describing the labour cost motivations of foreign investors and the weakness of organized labour in the region, the paper presents empirical evidence from case studies in the automotive sector in Poland, Hungary and Slovenia. All case studies confirm the existence of nationally specific, mostly informal forms of employee resistance limiting employer freedom, as well as some appearance of cross-border forms of resistance. Conclusions are drawn with regard to current debates on social dumping and Europeanization of industrial relations, stressing the value of bottom-up, shopfloor-sensitive approaches.

In the new EU member states, tripartite national-level social pacts have been promoted as a preferred and effective instrument for a rapid and relatively painless fulfilment of the Maastricht criteria, following the example of many of the old member states in the 1990s, and notably Italy. But such policy advice is not based on careful comparisons. By comparing Poland and Italy, this article undermines the dominant view that the failure of concertation attempts in Poland is mostly due to trade union politicization. The comparative test with Italy, a country with equally politicized trade unions, and where, by contrast, important social pacts have been signed, suggests that divergent employer strategies and organization are at least an equally important factor. Additionally, the study provides a more mixed assessment of the Italian social pacts. © 2006 Arbetslivinstitutet.

The extension of European Works Councils to central and eastern Europe is a rare attempt to create transnational employee representation covering both low- and high-wage areas. Research carried out in Poland in 2001 provides a quantitative estimate of such enlargement and a qualitative assessment of its effects. The evidence undermines fears of ‘social dumping’ and reveals indirect effects definable as ‘short circuits’.

This article discusses the implications of EU enlargement eastward for the so-called `European social model' and the `Europeanization' of industrial relations. After considering the standpoints of EU bodies, it supports an alternative `agency-based' perspective. A deeper analysis of the Polish case reveals that not only has enlargement an impact on industrial relations, but conversely industrial relations has a considerable impact on enlargement. A particular asymmetry is detected. In the West, employers strongly promote enlargement and unions (especially in some countries) are increasingly sceptical; in the East, the opposite is the case. This asymmetry increases the risks of American-style fragmentation of European industrial relations.

European citizens are largely unfavourable to immigration. These restrictive attitudes are linked to such factors as the unemployment rate and risk of poverty, as well as to competition for employment and welfare resources. Refuting insider/outsider theories, this article shows, via an analysis of recent European Social Surveys, that national social protection policies can reduce hostility towards immigration, insofar as they moderate social inequality and the risk of poverty. Ethnic and racial differences are problematic for the ‘egalitarian compromise’ underpinning the welfare state. Nonetheless, strong trade unions and social protection policies are associated with greater integration of immigrants. Over time, the future sustainability of welfare systems may depend on the participation of immigrants as a political force, making their integration even more important. © 2014, European Trade Union Institute. All rights reserved.

The article addresses the meaning and relevance of the recently emerged idea of ‘global labour governance’. Increasingly influential in policy, it has been criticized for political and theoretical reasons, including the risk of normative ideological uses. The article suggests that labour studies should nonetheless engage, theoretically and empirically, with the issue and the perspective of ‘global labour governance’. This is because of its growing political importance and for the attention it brings to still understudied issues of ‘multi-level’ dynamics, ‘networks’ and ‘reflexivity’. Systematic analysis of governance alternatives is needed. The traditions of the sociology of work and industrial relations can contribute to this analysis through their elaboration on informality, sectoral differences and collective action, as well as by problematizing the idea of ‘effectiveness’.

This article presents a critique of the 'methodological nationalism' of traditional comparative industrial relations. It investigates nine different sectors across the 27 EU member states on the basis of seven empirical indicators. It is found that industrial relations vary across sectors as deeply as they do across countries, and that a cluster analysis of sectoral industrial relations produces very different results from one at national aggregate level. The concept of 'national model' of industrial relations, implying coherence and homogeneity within countries, and geographical typologies of industrial relations 'types', are therefore put in question. The article concludes by pointing at the theoretical and methodological implications of a focus on the sector as an important level of analysis. © The Author(s) 2012.