Political Science : Labor & Industrial Relations

The former transition countries of Central, Eastern, and Southern Europe (CESE) inherited defined benefit public pension systems financed on a pay-as-you-go basis. Under central planning, these systems exhibited fiscal strains which worsened during the early years of the transition and became unsustainable under a market economy and projected population aging. All CESE countries introduced reforms that varied but typically focused on issues of sustainability rather than benefit adequacy.Nine case studies—Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Serbia—suggest the following broad policy conclusions: (i) fiscal sustainability has improved in most study countries, but few are fully prepared for the inevitability of population aging; (ii) the linkage between contributions and benefits has been strengthened, and pension system designs are better suited to market conditions; (iii) levels of income replacement are generally adequate for all but some categories of workers (including those with intermittent formal sector employment or low lifetime wages); (iv) further reforms to cope with population aging should focus on extending labor force participation by the elderly to avoid benefit cuts that could undermine adequacy and very high contribution rates that could discourage formal sector employment; and (v) more decisive financial market reforms are needed for funded provisions to deliver on the return expectations of participants. more...

Price: $39.95

Contains 8 papers dealing with European responses to high unemployment rates; the effects of alternative types of staffing arrangements; the adoption and use of alternative dispute resolution procedures in the non-union workplace; the implications of organizational ombuds arrangements for voice, conflict resolution and fairness at work; and more. more...

Price: $102.00

Opens a critical perspective on the slow death of socialism and the rebirth of capitalism in the world's most dynamic and populous country. Based on fieldwork and extensive interviews in Chinese textile, apparel, machinery, and household appliance factories, this book finds a rising tide of labor unrest mostly hidden from the world's attention. more...

Price: $21.95

This benchmark volume addresses the debate over the effects of early industrialization on standards of living during the decades before the Civil War. Its contributors demonstrate that the aggregate antebellum economy was growing faster than any other large economy had grown before. Despite the dramatic economic growth and rise in income levels, questions remain as to the general quality of life during this era. Was the improvement in income widely shared? How did economic growth affect the nature of work? Did higher levels of income lead to improved health and longevity? The authors address these questions by analyzing new estimates of labor force participation, real wages, and productivity, as well as of the distribution of income, height, and nutrition. more...

Price: $95.00

In recent years, the earnings of young blacks have risen substantially relative to those of young whites, but their rates of joblessness have also risen to crisis levels. The papers in this volume, drawing on the results of a groundbreaking survey conducted by the National Bureau of Economic Research, analyze the history, causes, and features of this crisis. The findings they report and conclusions they reach revise accepted explanations of black youth unemployment. The contributors identify primary determinants on both the demand and supply sides of the market and provide new information on important aspects of the problem, such as drug use, crime, economic incentives, and attitudes among the unemployed. Their studies reveal that, contrary to popular assumptions, no single factor is the predominant cause of black youth employment problems. They show, among other significant factors, that where female employment is high, black youth employment is low; that even in areas where there are many jobs, black youths get relatively few of them; that the perceived risks and rewards of crime affect decisions to work or to engage in illegal activity; and that churchgoing and aspirations affect the success of black youths in finding employment. Altogether, these papers illuminate a broad range of economic and social factors which must be understood by policymakers before the black youth employment crisis can be successfully addressed. more...

Price: $85.00