Labour and Social Transformation in Central and Eastern Europe

Over a quarter of a century after the fall of the Berlin Wall and 10 years after their accession to the European Union (EU), Central and Eastern Europe Countries (CEECs) still show marked differences with the rest of Europe in the fields of labour, work and industrial relations. This book presents a detailed and original analysis of labour and social transformations in the CEECs. By examining a wide range of countries in Central Europe, Labour and Social Transformation in Central and Eastern Europe offers a comprehensive and contrasting view of labour developments in Central and Eastern Europe. Chapters explore three related issues. The first deals with the understanding of the complex process of Europeanization applied in the sphere of labour, employment and industrial relations. The second issue refers to the attempt to link the Europeanization approach with an analysis mobilizing the theoretical concept of "dependent capitalism(s)". The third issue refers to the cumulative trends of labour weakening and labour awakening that has emerged, in particular in the aftermath of the crisis beginning in 2007-2008. This book will be of interest to academics, policy makers and stakeholders at European and national level in the EU member states.

Violaine Delteil is Associate Professor at the Institute for European Studies, Paris University Sorbonne Nouvelle and member of the Research Centre ICEE (Integration and Cooperation in the European Space), France. Vassil Kirov, PhD (Sciences Po) is Associate Professor at the Institute for the Study of Societies and Knowledge, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (ISSK-BAS) and Associate researcher at the Centre Pierre Naville, University of Evry and at the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI), Bulgaria.

Table of Contents List of Figures List of Tables Acknowledgements Notes on Contributors - Introduction: Revisiting the Transition: Labour Markets, Work and Industrial Relations in the New Europe Violaine Delteil and Vassil Kirov Part I. Dependent Capitalisms and Labour changes - The Limits of Europeanization in Central Europe: A Critical Perspective on Property Rights, Banking Capital, and Industrial Relations François Bafoil - Dependent Capitalism and Employment Relations in East Central Europe Jan Drahokoupil and Martin Myant - Institutional Transition, Power Relations and the Development of Employment Practices in Multinational Companies operating in Central and Eastern Europe Ilona Hunek and John Geary - Segmented capitalism in Hungary: diverging or converging development paths? Csaba Makó and Miklós Illéssy - Migration and Remittances in the Central and East European Countries Eugenia Markova Part II. Formal Dependencies and informal resistances to the Europeanisation of labour and IR models - The Fate of the 'Hard' and 'Soft' Acquis communautaires in the New Member States Guglielmo Meardi - The European Social Fund in Poland: a Tool for Europeanization and the Redistribution of Power between Domestic Actors Amélie Bonnet - Trade union influence in Eastern and Central Europe, the example of the Czech Republic Martin Myant - Building and Reshaping Social Dialogue in the CEECs: from Formal Europeanisation to New Dependencies and Contingencies in Bulgaria and Romania Violaine Delteil and Vassil Kirov - Expansion of Higher Education and Graduate Employability: Data and Insights from Central and Eastern Europe Pepka Boyadjieva and Petya Ilieva-Trichkova - Between Commitment and Indifference. Trade Unions, Young workers and the Expansion of Precarious Employment in Poland Adam Mrozowicki, Mateusz Karolak and Agata Krasowska Index