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Book part
Publication date: 25 May 2021

Graţiela Georgiana Noja, Mirela Cristea and Atila Yüksel

Introduction: Despite its significance, the research on international migration with a specific focus on the European Union (EU) needs to be strengthened with comprehensive…

Abstract

Introduction: Despite its significance, the research on international migration with a specific focus on the European Union (EU) needs to be strengthened with comprehensive studies, for developing better immigration and integration policies. Considering the amplitude of migration flows in Europe and recent challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic crisis, the Brexit decision and humanitarian dimension of the migration phenomena (asylum seekers and refugees), the need for better immigration and integration policies within the host countries’ labor markets stands out as a major research direction, especially in case of immigrants looking for better working and living conditions. Aim: This chapter aims to design specific immigration clusters within the main EU-10 destination countries (including Spain, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, UK, Germany, Austria, and Sweden) (cluster analysis procedure); and to identify feasible ways and specific policies for immigrants’ labor market success (spatial analysis and macroeconometric models). Method: The methodological framework consists of two parts: (i) immigration clusters analysis, based on the interlinkages between several fundamental migration coordinates, namely, economic welfare at destination, employment opportunities for the foreign population, migrant integration policies and associated governmental efforts, educational background; and (ii) spatial analysis models, namely spatial lag–autoregressive and spatial error, and other three econometric procedures, respectively, the robust regression, Panel Corrected Standard Errors, and Arellano-Bond Dynamic Generalized Method of Moments. National data compiled for the 10 main EU receiving economies during 2000–2015, with a particular focus on Spain were used. Findings: The impact of the proposed research is reflected through a set of new specific tailored ways, policies and strategies that can be adopted and implemented by the policy-makers across Europe. Our empirical results show that, overall, EU-10 countries still fail to identify immigrants with high levels of education and skills acquired to enhance their potential for labor market integration. Policy-makers should always monitor the specific ways in which migration policies lead to concrete positive labor market outcomes for immigrants and that the tools used for implementing these policies are suitable in achieving predefined migration goals. Therefore, a particular focus should be on developing a new immigration system to select migrants for their skills and high level of human capital, by following the best practices examples of other receiving countries.

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Contemporary Issues in Social Science
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80043-931-3

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Book part
Publication date: 11 November 2016

Guglielmo Meardi, Antonio Martín Artiles and Axel van den Berg

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…

Abstract

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.

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.

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,

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.

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.

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.

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Labour Mobility in the Enlarged Single European Market
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-442-6

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Book part
Publication date: 19 December 2017

The chapter elaborates a critical theoretical narrative about the political economy of European capitalism. It illustrates how precariousness has been exacerbated by the impact of…

Abstract

The chapter elaborates a critical theoretical narrative about the political economy of European capitalism. It illustrates how precariousness has been exacerbated by the impact of the global financial crisis and the emergence of a new system of European governance. Theoretical accounts in the sociology of work and labor studies have demonstrated the complexity of the outcomes and widely discussed the role of national labor market institutions and employment policies and practices, political ideology, and cultural frameworks impinging upon precarious work as a multidimensional concept. The chapter’s core concern is to illustrate how shifts in power resources, and particularly the weakening and deinstitutionalization of organized labor relative to capital, has acted as a central social condition that has brought about precariousness during the years leading up to and following the 2007–2008 crisis. In so doing, the chapter aims to overcome the existing theoretical accounts of precariousness which have often been limited by one or another variant of “methodological nationalism,” thereby exploring the transnational apparatuses that are emerging across national economies to date, and which impinge upon the structures and experiences that workers exhibit in an age of growing marketization.

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Precarious Work
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78743-288-8

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Article
Publication date: 16 August 2022

Emmanuele Pavolini, Giovanna Fullin and Gemma Scalise

This article contributes to the debate on how social policies and labour market regulation have been used to limit the socio-economic consequences of the pandemic by focusing on…

Abstract

Purpose

This article contributes to the debate on how social policies and labour market regulation have been used to limit the socio-economic consequences of the pandemic by focusing on one specific economic segment of European labour markets: private consumption services, such as trade, tourism, catering and other support services.

Design/methodology/approach

The analysis combines mixed methods and a variety of sources. First, we built a set of indicators from the EU-LFS microdata for 2019 and the 2018 Eurostat “Structure of earnings survey” and performed a cluster analysis (k-means) on the dimensions and indicators considered. Second, we elaborated EU-LFS data covering 2019 and 2020 (by quarter) and OECD 2020 data, and finally we traced Covid-related policy reforms for the period March 2020–December 2021 and analysed documents and information collected in different policy repositories.

Findings

The paper shows the relevance and characteristics of private consumption services in different countries, demonstrating that so-called labour market “outsiders” are highly represented in this sector and illustrates the policies adopted to respond to the pandemic in different European countries. The paper asks whether this emergency has been a window of opportunity to redefine regulation in this sector, making it more inclusive. It demonstrates, however, that the common approach in Europe has been dominated by temporary, short-term and one-off measures, which do not represent major changes to the social security schemes that were in place before the pandemic.

Originality/value

This article builds on the literature on labour market dualization, but approaches the concept from a different perspective – one not centred on the nature of employment relations (stable/unstable) but on economic sectors/branches. This article does not, therefore, discuss in general terms what happened to labour market outsiders during the pandemic, but rather focus attention on a specific group of workers who are highly exposed to risks stemming from dualization: those employed in the private consumption services. The economic sector perspective is an integrative way of framing dualization which is still under-researched.

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International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 43 no. 5/6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

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Article
Publication date: 1 May 1983

In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of…

16238

Abstract

In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 21 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

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Article
Publication date: 1 September 1994

Paul Teague

EU social policy is perhaps the most controversial aspect of Europeanintegration yet, despite all the political clashes on the matter,concepts like “social Europe” or “social…

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Abstract

EU social policy is perhaps the most controversial aspect of European integration yet, despite all the political clashes on the matter, concepts like “social Europe” or “social dimension” remain ill‐defined and imprecise terms. Intends to outline and clarify in detail the debate about whether or not the European Union should have competence with regard to labour market affairs. A key message is that social policy has been controversial because it has become embroiled in the debate about the future political direction of the EU. In particular, three contrasting political models –symbiotic integration, integrative federalism and neo‐liberalism – have been put forward as organizing principles for the EU and each has a coherent view of what form social policy should take at the European level. It is the clash between these three models that has caused EU social policy to be so contestable and intractable.

Article
Publication date: 19 October 2010

Sergio Destefanis and Giuseppe Mastromatteo

The purpose of this paper is to assess the evolution of labourmarket performance in the Organization for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) over the last decade…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the evolution of labourmarket performance in the Organization for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) over the last decade, considering the robustness of the claims made in an important OECD follow‐up study.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper sets up an empirical framework calibrated on an important OECD follow‐up study, and suggests some ways in which the impact of unobserved heterogeneity and outliers on policy estimates can be treated in a cross‐section framework. The framework applies to the data for 30 OECD countries.

Findings

The paper finds that changes in labourmarket performance are inversely linked to lagged unemployment. Changes in the share of construction workers are also significant even in the presence of various kinds of policy change indicators. As far as the latter are concerned, the results highlight the role of unemployment benefits and, especially, active labourmarket policies.

Research limitations/implications

The kind of policy change indicators used do not allow the adoption of panel data techniques.

Practical implications

An important policy role seems to emerge for unemployment benefit reforms and, even more so, active labourmarket policies. The evidence also supports the contention that the construction sector is important for labourmarket performance.

Originality/value

The paper brings to the fore novel evidence about cross‐country labourmarket performance at a time when this issue is of high interest for citizens and policy‐makers.

Details

International Journal of Manpower, vol. 31 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7720

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Article
Publication date: 1 December 2005

Karl Aiginger

The purpose of this paper is to reassess the relative impact of labour market regulation on economic performance. Inflexible labour markets combined with high welfare costs are…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to reassess the relative impact of labour market regulation on economic performance. Inflexible labour markets combined with high welfare costs are often thought to be the main cause of low growth in Europe.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper compares the impact of labour market regulation to that of macroeconomic policies (such as fiscal policy, monetary policy, macroeconomic cost management) and to that of investment into future growth (such as research, education and the diffusion of technology). We develop for this purpose a highly stylised model explaining economic growth; we suggest a synthetic measure of performance and use data for the US and Europe for the empirical test.

Findings

The main result is that regulation impacts on growth, the impact of regulatory change is, however, less easy to demonstrate. The impact of macro economic policy can be demonstrated first by the more growth oriented monetary and fiscal policy in the US and the success of some European countries in bringing private and public costs in line with productivity and tax revenues. However, boosting investment into future growth by encouraging research, education and technology diffusion seems to be the most important determinant of performance.

Research limitations/implications

As to the limits of this paper, we have to acknowledge that our analysis refers to a short time period, a small number of countries and uses a highly stylised model.

Practical implications

If the results can be replicated for larger data sets and by more elaborated technical methods, the findings have an important policy implication: country strategies relying only on deregulation, without complementary macroeconomic policy and without strategy to boost “growth drivers” are suboptimal. This questions the policy advice given by some economists and economic think tanks, which call for deregulation as main policy strategy and then expect market forces to boost growth quickly and without specific policy measures.

Originality/value

The attempt to assess the relative impact of the three policy areas is specific to this paper; most other papers focus on one policy area only.

Details

Journal of Economic Studies, vol. 32 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3585

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Article
Publication date: 1 December 2001

Matti Sihto

The strategy of an active labour market policy (ALMP) is popular, but its content is still far from clear. With this historical and contextual analysis, the author aims to capture…

3483

Abstract

The strategy of an active labour market policy (ALMP) is popular, but its content is still far from clear. With this historical and contextual analysis, the author aims to capture the strategy’s core content. Development of the strategy has been full of paradoxes. However, the goal of improving the functioning of the labour market so as to promote full employment without accelerating inflation has remained, as have the central attributes of ALMP, its selectivity and supply‐side measures. Labour market circumstances have changed significantly since the creation of the strategy and many of its premises have been questioned. Although the strategy has been vital, it is today once again in crisis. However, encouraging employment development in some European countries shows that an active labour market policy can play an important role together with economic policy and the policy of the social partners.

Details

International Journal of Manpower, vol. 22 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7720

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Article
Publication date: 1 September 2000

Jonathan C. Morris

Looks at the 2000 Employment Research Unit Annual Conference held at the University of Cardiff in Wales on 6/7 September 2000. Spotlights the 76 or so presentations within and…

31482

Abstract

Looks at the 2000 Employment Research Unit Annual Conference held at the University of Cardiff in Wales on 6/7 September 2000. Spotlights the 76 or so presentations within and shows that these are in many, differing, areas across management research from: retail finance; precarious jobs and decisions; methodological lessons from feminism; call centre experience and disability discrimination. These and all points east and west are covered and laid out in a simple, abstract style, including, where applicable, references, endnotes and bibliography in an easy‐to‐follow manner. Summarizes each paper and also gives conclusions where needed, in a comfortable modern format.

Details

Management Research News, vol. 23 no. 9/10/11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0140-9174

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1 – 10 of over 76000