Labour Markets, Firms and Institutions: Labour Economics and Industrial Relations

1998 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 508-532 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Gahan ◽  
Tim Harcourt
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Labour Markets ◽  
Exchange Relationships ◽  
Employment Relation ◽  
Economic Theories ◽  
Labour Economics ◽  
Fields Of Study ◽  
The Social ◽  
Ambiguous Position

The study of tbe employment relation has always held a somewhat ambiguous position within the field of economics. The nature of labour market adjustment processes and unique aspects of the employment relation have posed problems for standard economic theories and have limited the use of formal modelling. Moreover, institutionalist approaches have been a greater challenge to labour economists than in any other area of enquiry within the discipline (Jacoby, 1990). Traditionally, this difference has been manifest in a clear distinction between labour economics and industrial relations as separate fields of study. The artificiality of such a distinction, we argue, poses problems for understanding the phenomena of concern to both disciplines. In this paper we argue that notwithstanding the important insights gained from standard neoclassical models of the labour market, they do not provide an adequate basis for understanding the employment relationship and institutional features of labour markets. Instead, we begin with the assumption adopted by industrial relations scholars that the labour market is different from other economic exchange relationships and use this as a basis for developing a more realistic framework to understand both the social and economic dimensions of the employment relation.

Opening the Black Box: Economic Analyses of Internal Labour Markets

1992 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 455-471 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Creedy ◽  
Keith Whitfield
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Black Box ◽  
Labour Markets ◽  
Labour Economics ◽  
Internal Labour Markets ◽  
Competing Hypotheses ◽  
Economic Analyses

Recent years have seen the increasing interest of economists in the behaviour of firms in relation to their employees. The result is a reduction in the dichotomy of subject matter between industrial relations and labour economics. Despite this, substantial differences still exist, particularly between the approach of neoclassical economists and those (both economists and others) working outside this tradition. These differences are both theoretical and methodological and suggest a need for researchers examining the internal labour market to build bridges in their efforts to understand how firms price and allocate their labour. It is also suggested that a greater emphasis on the testing of competing hypotheses would be useful in this respect.

scholarly journals (Re)making labour markets and economic crises: The case of Ireland

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enda Murphy ◽  
Julien Mercille
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Labour Markets ◽  
Social Nature ◽  
The Social ◽  
Welfare Systems ◽  
Inclusive Approach ◽  
Regulatory Interventions ◽  
Irish Case

The 2008 economic crisis has had significant impacts on labour markets around the world. In Europe, in particular, the need for internal devaluation within European Union nations in financial difficulty precipitated a wave of labour market reforms alongside the reform of welfare systems struggling to cope with high levels of unemployment. Various analyses have explored the nature of these changes separately for the labour market and welfare systems. Using a conceptual framework rooted in a political economy understanding the social nature of labour, this article takes an inclusive approach to understanding regulatory changes for both employed and unemployed labour. We do this using the case of Ireland, a country that went through a severe economic crisis, was subject to a European Union/European Central Bank/International Monetary Fund bailout in 2010 and witnessed one of the most significant labour market crises in Europe. The Irish case is instructive because it highlights both the range and depth of regulatory interventions utilised by the state during periods of crisis to deal with the social nature of labour and its role under advanced capitalism. JEL codes: J01, J08, J48.

Changing Labour Market and Industrial Relations, Changing Times: Make in India and Ensuing Labour Reforms

2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-67
Author(s):  
Kuriakose Mamkoottam
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Bargaining Power ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Economic Inequality ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Large Majority ◽  
The Social ◽  
Changing Times ◽  
Unorganized Sector

This article argues that the ‘Make-in-India’ and the proposed labour reforms are unlikely to succeed given the unequal structure of the Indian labour market, with the large majority of the Indian labour force remaining in the unorganized sector and unprotected by the labour laws. It is further argued that the introduction of some of the proposed labour reforms are likely to create further imbalance in the bargaining power in favour of management, which may not help to develop a balanced labour market, and may further increase the social and economic inequality.

25 jaar onderzoek naar arbeidsvraagstukken: ontwikkelingen, spanningsvelden en nieuwe uitdagingen

2009 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacques van Hoof
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Psychological Contracts ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Labour Economics ◽  
Multidisciplinary Cooperation ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
New Challenges

25 years of labour studies in the Netherlands: developments, tensions and new challenges 25 years of labour studies in the Netherlands: developments, tensions and new challenges By comparing developments in several disciplines a general picture of the state of the art of Dutch labour studies is presented. First, the specific contribution of each discipline (sociology of work, labour economics, work and organizational psychology and public administration) is described. Sociology studies the transformations on the labour market and within organizations and their unequal consequences for labour market success and quality of work of different groups of workers. Labour economics is characterized by the consequent application of the principle of utility maximization on a wide range of mainly labour market issues. Psychology highlights the 'inner world' of organizations in transition by studying stress and burnout, employability requirements, psychological contracts and so on. Public administration contributes to the study of labour policies by emphasizing the way implementation is being organized and studies management problems of public sector organizations. However, there is also a lot of overlap between these disciplines, which offer opportunities for multidisciplinary cooperation. Next, two sources of tensions are being discussed which characterize the field as a whole: the tension between a discipline-oriented and a more problem-oriented approach and the tension between theory and practice. It is concluded that both have increased during the last 25 years. Finally, a research agenda is presented, consisting of ten themes which have strategic value for the future of work, employment and industrial relations and ask for multidisciplinary cooperation.

Labour Exchanges and the Labour Reserve in Turn of the Century Social Reform

1992 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 435-468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malcolm Mansfield
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Social Reform ◽  
Social Problems ◽  
Turn Of The Century ◽  
Labour Markets ◽  
Close Reading ◽  
Conceptual Frameworks ◽  
Employment Relationships ◽  
The Social

ABSTRACTThis article attempts to describe a major debate in turn of the century social reform through a close reading of the published works of Charles Booth, J.A. Hobson, William Beveridge, A.C. Pigou and others. My aim is to reconstruct the emergence and elaboration of a theory of labour market disorganisation, understood as the absence of effective norms governing employment relationships in urban labour markets subject to chronic over-supply. In so doing I shall take issue with a tendency in the historiography of social policy to fragment this debate into the development of two distinct conceptual frameworks corresponding to the social problems of poverty and unemployment more or less as we know them today.

‘Jobs, jobs, jobs’, ambivalence of concerted change for employment in Europe

2004 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 552-568
Author(s):  
Evelyne Leonard ◽  
Pierre Reman
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Full Employment ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Active Participation ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Labour Markets ◽  
Member States ◽  
Market Change ◽  
Labour Market Change

Unions’ and employers’ organisations are broadly considered as significant actors in the regulation of labour markets in Europe. And since its formal launch in 1997, the European Employment Strategy has insisted on their active participation in the implementation of the guidelines within Member States. From an industrial relations point of view, such participation seems natural, and even desirable. However, bipartite and tripartite processes for employment and the nature of current labour market change are not without challenges for unions and employers’ associations. Adopting a slightly provocative position, this article questions the ambivalences of concertation in the search for full employment.

Labour Market Restructuring in Industrialised Societies: An Overview

1998 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Quinlan
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Economic Consequences ◽  
Labour Markets ◽  
Work Processes ◽  
Competitive Tendering ◽  
Employment Conditions ◽  
Time Work ◽  
Market Restructuring

over the past 20 years the labour markets of most industrialised countries have undergone a series of profound changes. These changes have been associated with significant changes in work processes, employment conditions, union density and industrial relations. This paper provides an overview of the labour market restructuring occurring in most industrialised societies. In addition to the growth in temporary, part-time work and self-employment, changes in the extent of agency labour, homework, telework, outsourcing, franchising and the timing of work are also considered. A series of complex interconnections are identified. It is argued that in many cases, the socio-economic consequences of these changes have been compounded by alterations to policies and laws dealing with industrial relations, labour markets, competitive tendering, privatisation and social security.

scholarly journals Problems Of The Functioning Of Local Labour Markers In The Context Of The New Economic Reality

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-53
Author(s):  
Pk. Katabay
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Labour Markets ◽  
Institutional Characteristics ◽  
Business Activity ◽  
Economic Relations ◽  
State Management ◽  
Russian Economy ◽  
Local Labour ◽  
The Social ◽  
Economic Reality

Barriers of modernizing and innovative developing the social and labour sphere of the Russian economy have been revealed and conceptual principles of state management of the development of economic relations in Russia in the framework of the new economic reality as well as the strategy of resetting the Russian economy on the innovative way of development and increasing business activity have been formulated. Local labour markets have been defined as an economic category. Institutional characteristics of the labour market have been presented, and the process of institualizing the development of economic relations has been explained.

scholarly journals Are Social Economy Organizations a Viable Alternative on the Labour Market for Students from Non-Economic Fields of Study? Research Results

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-7
Author(s):  
Janusz Reichel ◽  
Agata Rudnicka ◽  
Błażej Socha
Keyword(s):  
Career Development ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Focal Point ◽  
Social Economy ◽  
Current Debate ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Fields Of Study ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Economy Organizations

Abstract Labour market is getting more and more diverse. Young people have broad spectrum of possibilities to plan and develop their future careers. Future graduates may put attention on different opportunities from huge corporations to local non-governmental organizations. One of still underestimated sectors as a working place is the social enterprise sector. The current debate of the labour market is focusing on the issue of competences needed to meet the needs of a highly competitive labour market. The idea of entrepreneurship is also a focal point for these considerations. The main aim of the paper is to present the analysis of choices for career development among students from non-economic fields of study. The research was conducted among students of non-economics majors in the University of Lodz, Poland. Authors were seeking the answer to the question of whether the social economy organizations are treated as a potential workplace. The main results of the study confirm that the social economy sector is not the priority as a future choice for career development.

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