1. Public policy and European society University of Castellanza
Session #2(b)
Blocked Societies?
The crisis of continental corporatism and the success of the Scandinavian model
10 November 2010

2. Outline Euroscelorosis? Blocked societies (France, Germany, Italy)
Europe has less people at work than the USA –lower employment
But employment rose from late 1990s everywhere
And some European societies have very high levels of employment
Blocked societies (France, Germany, Italy)
Low employment, inflexible labour markets, weak education, low birth rates
Scandinavian success
High employment, flexible labour markets, good education, moderate birth rate and high social welfare!
France as new model?

3. Lisbon Declaration Lisbon targets ‘Arbeit macht frei?’
70% overall employment
60% women
50% older workers
‘Arbeit macht frei?’
But many societies and groups have ‘chosen’ low employment rates, sometimes with high productivity
Economic citizenship
justifies employment
ensures work compatible with social reproduction

4. Forms of women’s participation
Women at work c2005
Women part time as % all female employment
Hours worked: difference- households with and without children
Marginal part-time as % all dependent employees
France
29.4 -1 9
Germany
36.4*
-3.3 18
Italy
16.9 +2 8
Sweden
33.1
+0.1 6 UK
43.9 -6 21
EU15
33.5
-3.4**
14**
Low employment countries (Italy) have little part-time work
Countries with high part-time rates have very different forms of participation
Deregulated labour markets = ‘bad’ jobs?

5. Three worlds of welfare – and ‘defamiliasation’
Liberal regime
Market solutions
Deregulated labour market-
Immigrant caring labour
Part-time and temporary work for women
Social democratic
Extensive care services:
Good low skill employment
Enable women to leave home
Conservative/ corporatist
Subsidiarity so family important
Insurance based benefits
Priority of full-time work
Mediterannean (?)
As conservative but incomplete coverage
Which countries?
UK and Ireland
Scandinavia
France and Germany
Italy, Spain, Greece…
New member states?
Changes?

8. Employment Protection Legislation – laws that make it difficult and/or expensive for employers to dismiss employees

9. Blocked societies Insider/outsider labour markets
Low employment rates
High unemployment
High youth unemployment
Ineffective third level education
Disconnection from labour market (low returns to education)
Long duration of degree
Low research (few high ranked universities)
Low birth rates
Germany and especially Italy; not France
Despite traditional pro-family policy
And in Italy:
Low female employment
Corruption

10. Old Europe? Total fertility rates 1975-1992
New causes of low fertility:
Low labour market participation
Strong influence of traditional ideology
New causes of high fertility
High labour market participation
Childcare (by state or market)
Flexible labour markets
So where women can work and have children

11. A new France?
Nicholas Sarkozy
Ségolène Royal

12. Scandinavian flexicurity
Activation
Retraining and life-long learning
Protect the worker, not the job
Low Employment Protection
Results
High employment rate
High job mobility (‘flexibility’) and effective job search
Firms can innovate without employment problems
BUT needs high trust and is expensive!

13. Scandinavian successes
Family and social services
Extensive good quality services (especially childcare) enable women to participate in employment by moving ‘women’s jobs’ outside the home
Social services provide good quality caring jobs (largely for women)
Contributes to relatively high birth rate and egalitarian household division of labour
BUT public sector/private sector gender divide
High and continuing education
High overall levels of education (no US or UK ‘tail’)
The basis for innovative enterprises through links to commercial R&D
Creates flexible workforce

14. A continental solution?
New strength of ‘Continental’ ‘conservative regimes
Extensive automatic stabilisers (welfare)
Acceptance of state regulation and intervention