1. Intersection of politics, economics, and society
Dealing with inequality and social stratification

2. INTRODUCTION Welfare state regimes Educational institutions
Systems of industrial relations
WHY?  these phenomena and institutions are focused on influencing social stratification and inequality
INTRODUCTION

3. European states have developed similar fundamental institutions
BUT
Differ at the level of specific institutional arrangements
BECAUSE
Product of specific social and political compromises, cultural traditions, and path dependency (historical development
NONTHELESS
National models of social organisation can be expected to converge
INTRODUCTION

4. 1 WELFARE STATE REGIMES
Esping-Andersen: market economies+democracies+state intervention
Western countries divided into 3 groups:
Liberal, Social-democratic, Conservative- corporatist
Measures them in terms of degree of “decommodification”
Where is Central and Eastern Europe?

5. DECOMMODIFICATION
When workers are commodified, they must sell their labor-power on the market to survive  Their labor (or them) become a commodity
Decommodification implies that they do not have to sell their labor to survive
It is the emancipation from market dependency

6. WELFARE STATE REGIMES SOCIAL-DEMOCRATIC REGIME LIBERAL REGIME
USA, Canada, UK, Australia
Responsibility of the state is limited
Social security system is combination of market-based insurance and tax financing
It is means-tested
Access is stigmatized and level of help is low (disincentive to work)
SOCIAL-DEMOCRATIC REGIME
Northern Europe (Sweden as best example)
Based on the maxims of equality, common good, and solidarity
Social security system is combination of citizenship rights and comprehensive social insurance
Universal in character, benefits are high and has egalitarian effect
WELFARE STATE REGIMES

7. WELFARE STATE REGIMES CONSERVATIVE-CORPORATIST REGIME
Germany, France, Spain, Italy
Social security system largely reproduces market inequalities
Degree of social security linked to level of achieved labour-market status  YOU REDISTRIBUTE TO YOUR FUTURE SELF
Family is a central institution to help with material needs
Gendered division of labour
POST-SOCIALIST REGIME
In most CEE states
Combination of conservative and liberal regimes + some residues of paternalism
Social security system linked to labour market position
Family and primary social network important in securing welfare
Access is means-tested, with minimal benefits
Carries stigma of poverty and shame
WELFARE STATE REGIMES

8. TRANSLATING REGIMES INTO POLICIES
What are the key elements of social policy/welfare domain?
Retirement policy
Health care policy
Family policy
Housing policy
TRANSLATING REGIMES INTO POLICIES

9. 2 EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
Largely comparable across Europe
Education divided into primary, secondary, and tertiary
There are certain level of difference in vocational education and types of school systems

10. 3 SYTEMS OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
Relations between capital and labour (with the assistance and oversight of government)
Collective bargaining agreement: the most important instriument for shaping those relations
Institutionalized in tripartism and tripartite negotiation processes

11. 4 IDEAL TYPES OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
CORPORATIST/SOCIAL-PARTNERSHIP
Collective bargaining is carried out by well-organised employer organisations and unions
Search for consesus is institutionalized – tripartite institutions
Job security is medium to very good
Strikes occur rarely
Demands linked to macroeconomic considerations
CONFLICT-ORIENTED
Relationship is polarized and unregulated
Strikes occur often – high mobilization capacity and fighting power of the unions
state intervention needed to resolve conflict
Labour movement is fragmented
Job security very high
4 IDEAL TYPES OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

12. 4 IDEAL TYPES OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
PLURALISTIC
Partial institutionalization of opposing interests
Fragmentation of both unions and employers’ associations
State regulates minimally and stays out of negotiating process
Strikes occur sporadically
Job security is weak
POST-SOCIALIST
Unions are weak at all levels
Minorty of workers are covered by collective agreement
State plays important role
Strikes are almost absent
Job security is weak
4 IDEAL TYPES OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

13. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT
Most important instrument for shaping industrial labour relations
Determines formal and material employment conditions
Applied either to specific firms or entire branches of industry
Binding for all companies belonging to an employers’ association
Focus is on voluntary negotiations between representatives of capital and of labour
Important in the 1950s through 1970s; weak now  „Americanization of collective regulations”
COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT

14. MAIN ACTORS in the system
Three main collective actors: the state, the unions, and the employers’ associations
STATE: serves as guarantor of autonomy of all parties; large-scale employer as well; regulator (through laws and regulations)
EMPLOYERS’ ASSOCIATIONS: they serve as lobbiers for owner’s rights; differ in scale and number
UNIONS: influential in manfuacturing and public administration; almost irelevant in the private sector; importance of the strength and membership of unions for their success
MAIN ACTORS in the system

15. Decline of unions
Shrinkage of many economic sectors which were union strongholds (manufacturing)
Loss of influence in CEE due to the nature of unions in previous regime and the nature of economic transformation
Demographic changes – young workers tend not to belong to unions
New lifestyle make union represetnation irelevant
Gap between interest of workers and interest represented by trade union associations =
Less strikes in Europe  pacification of industrial relations (despite growing inequality between labour and capital