New Forms of Work Organization in Europe

New Forms of Work Organization in Europe
Author: Peter Grootings
Publisher: Transaction Publishers
Total Pages: 274
Release:
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9781412829618

A remarkable development in the sociology of work in recent years has been the explosion of brilliant cross-national and cross-cultural studies in Europe examining the conditions of labor against the background of different economic systems, and differences within each of the major free market, mixed welfare, and planned economic systems that dot the European landscape. In Vienna and Budapest in particular, a group of intellectual workers have gotten together for what can only be described as breakthrough studies in the conditions and purposes of work in post-industrial society. The question of new forms of work organization focuses on job satisfaction, participatory democracy in the work place, levels of productivity, and issues of health and safety in the occupational environment. That these elements are important have long been known. But what this collection of studies emphasizes is the specific mix that produced specific outcomes. It does not shy away from dangerous and tough questions: worker control and control of workers, political participation in contexts of authoritarian regimes, and personal rewards in contexts that once frowned upon private acquisition of capital. The volume is rich in empirical studies and draws the theoretical implications that can and already have had vast policy consequences for workers in the modern " context. Issues relating to job rotation, enrichment, enlargement and autonomy, and others related to new forms of organization starting with the shop floor and extending throughout the management of the enterprise as a whole are dealt with candidly. The social character of labor, long frowned upon as a mechanism for evading bread-and-butter issues, is now recognized, East and West, as a dimension of concern that is growing precisely as the size and character of the labor sector is diminishing. This is must reading for those interested in new forms of social and policy synthesis, and ways of meliorating competing claims of different sectors in modern societies.

Balanced Automation Systems

Balanced Automation Systems
Author: Luis M. Camarinha-Matos
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 465
Release: 2013-06-05
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0387349103

Towards Balanced Automation The concept. Manufacturing industries worldwide are facing tough challenges as a consequence of the globalization of economy and the openness of the markets. Progress of the economic blocks such as the European Union, NAFTA, and MERCOSUR, and the global agreements such as GATT, in addition to their obvious economic and social consequences, provoke strong paradigm shifts in the way that the manufacturing systems are conceived and operate. To increase profitability and reduce the manufacturing costs, there is a recent tendency towards establishing partnership links among the involved industries, usually between big industries and the networks of components' suppliers. To benefit from the advances in technology, similar agreements are being established between industries and universities and research institutes. Such an open tete-cooperation network may be identified as an extended enterprise or a virtual enterprise. In fact, the manufacturing process is no more carried out by a single enterprise, rather each enterprise is just a node that adds some value (a step in the manufacturing chain) to the cooperation network of enterprises. The new trends create new scenarios and technological challenges, especially to the Small and Medium size Enterprises (SMEs) that clearly comprise the overwhelming majority of manufacturing enterprises worldwide. Under the classical scenarios, these SMEs would have had big difficulties to access or benefit from the state of the art technology, due to their limited human, financial, and material resources.

The European Union in the 21st Century

The European Union in the 21st Century
Author: Stefano Micossi
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9789290799290

The contributors to this book are all members of EuropEos, a multidisciplinary group of jurists, economists, political scientists, and journalists in an ongoing forum discussing European institutional issues. The essays analyze emerging shifts in common policies, institutional settings, and legitimization, sketching out possible scenarios for the European Union of the 21st century. They are grouped into three sections, devoted to economics and consensus, international projection of the Union, and the institutional framework. Even after the major organizational reforms introduced to the EU by the new Treaty of Lisbon, which came into force in December 2009, Europe appears to remain an entity in flux, in search of its ultimate destiny. In line with the very essence of EuropEos, the views collected in this volume are sometimes at odds in their specific conclusions, but they stem from a common commitment to the European construction.

European Social Fund

European Social Fund
Author: European Commission
Publisher:
Total Pages: 64
Release: 2007
Genre: Den Europæiske Socialfond
ISBN:

Jubilæumsskrift for Den Europæiske Socialfond

New Forms of Employment in Europe

New Forms of Employment in Europe
Author: Roger Blanpain
Publisher: Kluwer Law International B.V.
Total Pages: 452
Release: 2016-11-30
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9041162410

The 'full-time job' is no longer an option for many people seeking employment. It has been replaced by an ever-expanding plethora of 'atypical' employment relationships designed by employers to streamline their operations and/or take advantage of information communications technology. Numerous labour law issues arise, demanding urgent attention. How should law and policy best address these challenges? This incomparable and timely book explores this contentious topic in depth, presenting ten penetrating essays on aspects of the topic by leading European authorities followed by reports on new forms of employment in thirty-five European countries Full-scale analysis of new forms of employment, their characteristics, and their effects on working conditions and the labour market includes such issues as the following: - employment relationships with more than one employer; - discontinuous and/or intermittent work; - work based on networking arrangements; - labour pooling; - crowdworking and crowsourcing; - lack of worker representation; - rights for vulnerable migrant workers; - removal of wage and hours threshold; - false self-employment; - non-payment of 'small' amounts (e.g., holiday pay); - portage salarial; - voucher-based work; - ICT-based mobile work; - organizations offering specific administrative services; - need for safety nets for workers; and - existing and potential monitoring and control mechanisms. Relevant EU Directives and national legal frameworks regarding new forms of employment are fully discussed, with an emphasis on recent trends and proposed solutions. This volume raises awareness of the problems generated by new emerging forms of employment and provides some answers and insights, including lessons to be learned from current developments. In particular, the authors' bringing to light of issues that have not been sufficiently addressed so far under European law will be welcomed by labour law practitioners, company legal counsel, human resources professionals, and academics in the field.

Mainstreaming Equality in the European Union

Mainstreaming Equality in the European Union
Author: Teresa Rees
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 292
Release: 2006-06-19
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 1134820925

Mainstreaming Equality in the European Union provides a critical overview and evaluation of the potential role of the EU in perpetuating or breaking down gender segregation in the EU labour force. Teresa Rees draws upon feminist theoretical frameworks in assessing Equal Opportunitues policies and the role of training in the labour market. The same economic imperatives which put women's training on the agenda have heightened interest in designing training which attracts women into mainstream provision. Mainstreaming Equality in the European Union addresses the urgent need for academics, education and training providers, as well as policy makers to be aware of current thinking at EU level on training policy.

Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2015

Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2015
Author: David Natali (OSE)
Publisher: ETUI
Total Pages: 298
Release: 2015-09-23
Genre: European Union countries
ISBN: 2874523747

The sixteenth edition of Social policy in the European Union: state of play has a triple ambition. First, it provides easily accessible information to a wide audience about recent developments in both EU and domestic social policymaking. Second, the volume provides a more analytical reading, embedding the key developments of the year 2014 in the most recent academic discourses. Third, the forward-looking perspective of the book aims to provide stakeholders and policymakers with specific tools that allow them to discern new opportunities to influence policymaking. In this 2015 edition of Social policy in the European Union: state of play, the authors tackle the topics of the state of EU politics after the parliamentary elections, the socialisation of the European Semester, methods of political protest, the Juncker investment plan, the EU’s contradictory education investment, the EU’s contested influence on national healthcare reforms, and the neoliberal Trojan Horse of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

Capitalism Against Capitalism

Capitalism Against Capitalism
Author: Michael Albert
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2009-01-27
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1870332547

Communism has collapsed. Capitalism has rid itself of the competition on which it thrives. But though now victorious, capitalism has become a threat. The future of us all may be shaped by the outcome of the conflict between capitalism as victor and capitalism as threat. Not only in Europe, but also in the US and Japan - and no doubt shortly in the Eastern countries too - the great debate is capitalism versus capitalism. On the one hand is the "neo-American" model based on individual achievement and short-term profits. On the other is the Rhine model practices in Switzerland, Germany, Benelux, Northern Europe and, partly, in Japan. In the Rhine model collective achievement and public concensus are seen as the keys to long-term success. The first is more seductive, the second more effective. These two opposing forms of capitalism are engaged in a war which, like all internal conflicts, involves both secrecy and even hypocrisy. The outcome of this struggle could affect the quality of life on all levels of society. The author of this book aims to provide a synthesis which will force the reader to consider the political and economic issues at stake towards the end of the century.

Assuring the Quality of Health Care in the European Union

Assuring the Quality of Health Care in the European Union
Author: Helena Legido-Quigley
Publisher: World Health Organization
Total Pages: 242
Release: 2008
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 9289071931

People have always travelled within Europe for work and leisure, although never before with the current intensity. Now, however, they are travelling for many other reasons, including the quest for key services such as health care. Whatever the reason for travelling, one question they ask is "If I fall ill, will the health care I receive be of a high standard?" This book examines, for the first time, the systems that have been put in place in all of the European Union's 27 Member States. The picture it paints is mixed. Some have well developed systems, setting standards based on the best available evidence, monitoring the care provided, and taking action where it falls short. Others need to overcome significant obstacles.