This volume presents, for the first time, a comprehensive analysis of national minimum wage systems in Europe and the USA. The study, coordinated by the Economic and Social Sciences Institute (WSI) in the Hans Böckler Foundation, contains studies of countries such as Great Britain, Ireland, the... Find out more

Twenty years of continuous economic growth, with annual rates of up to 10%, have significantly increased the economic and also the political weight of the People's Republic of China. Indeed, China is on the way to becoming a global economic power. However, this process of growth has produced not... Find out more

What role will the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights play in the future for labour law in the European Union Member States? How could it affect industrial relations in these states? These are crucial questions to which a group of eminent European labour law professors and researchers seek to offer... Find out more

"Current concerns with achieving the objectives of the LisbonStrategy together with the recent enlargement and widespread debate on the adoption of a new EU constitution have contributed to renewed interest in the sustainability of the European Social Model. This book offers an up-to-date, wide... Find out more

To what extent is Europe moving towards the EU's vision of the knowledge-based society (KBS) with better quality jobs and gender equality? The underlying force believed to be driving the transition to the KBS is the growing use of information and communication technologies (ICTs), creating economic... Find out more

The regulation of working time has historically been at the centre of the labour movement's struggle and in recent decades working time has also been a core issue for trade unions. In the 1990s and early 2000s, much of the working time debate was about labour's goal of working time reduction, the... Find out more

What role should macroeconomic policy play in achieving the economic and employment goals that the European Union set itself at the Lisbon Council in 2000? The conventional wisdom is that macroeconomic policy must be solely oriented towards ensuring price stability, and that the goal of more and... Find out more

The European social model under pressure The concept of the European social model has been central to the development of the European Union. Social inclusion, social rights, social dialogue and an important role for the social partners have been recognised as key elements of Europe and are among... Find out more

In complete contrast, 2005 was a year of setbacks and reappraisals. Everything appeared to be under control at the start of the year, when the highly experienced Prime Minister of Luxembourg, Jean-Claude Juncker, began his presidency by addressing three major issues: amending the Stability and... Find out more