scholarly journals Regions, borders, and social policy

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-2
Author(s):  
Harlan Koff ◽  
Carmen Maganda
Keyword(s):  
Social Cohesion ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Professional Associations ◽  
Equal Treatment ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Socioeconomic Rights ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
National Boundaries ◽  
Coordination Policy

This first issue of Volume Four of Regions & Cohesion continues a trend of articles that gained momentum in Volume Three, focusing on the territorial aspects of welfare in social cohesion debates. The Summer 2013 issue of the journal presented a collection of articles that specifically discussed the role of borders and border policies in social cohesion politics. Although this collection was not intended to be presented as a thematically specific issue, the simultaneous arrival of these pieces highlighted the importance of borders in defining the territorial limits of cohesion and the ensuing renegotiation of these limits in political debates. For example, the article by Irina S. Burlacu and Cathal O’Donoghue focused on the impacts of the European Union’s social security coordination policy on the welfare of cross-border workers in Belgium and Luxembourg. The article illustrated the limits of this regional policy as cross-border workers do not receive equal treatment compared to domestic workers in the country of employment. Similarly, an article by Franz Clément in the same issue analyzed the “socio-political representation” of cross-border workers and discusses how such workers can mobilize for socioeconomic rights in institutions aimed at worker protection (such as professional associations, trade unions, etc.). Both articles show that despite formal regionalization of legislation concerning social rights and representation, national boundaries clearly present challenges to cross-border workers who have difficulty negotiating rights in both their country of employment and country of residence.

American Insecurity

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Seth Levine
Keyword(s):  
Political Behavior ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Political Organization ◽  
Economic Insecurity ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
College Tuition ◽  
New Perspective ◽  
Care Costs ◽  
Politically Active

Americans today face no shortage of threats to their financial well-being, such as job and retirement insecurity, health care costs, and spiraling college tuition. While one might expect that these concerns would motivate people to become more politically engaged on the issues, this often doesn't happen, and the resulting inaction carries consequences for political debates and public policy. Moving beyond previously studied barriers to political organization, this book sheds light on the public's inaction over economic insecurities by showing that the rhetoric surrounding these issues is actually self-undermining. By their nature, the very arguments intended to mobilize individuals—asking them to devote money or time to politics—remind citizens of their economic fears and personal constraints, leading to undermobilization and nonparticipation. The book explains why the set of people who become politically active on financial insecurity issues is therefore quite narrow. When money is needed, only those who care about the issues but are not personally affected become involved. When time is needed, participation is limited to those not personally affected or those who are personally affected but outside of the labor force with time to spare. The latter explains why it is relatively easy to mobilize retirees on topics that reflect personal financial concerns, such as Social Security and Medicare. In general, however, when political representation requires a large group to make their case, economic insecurity threats are uniquely disadvantaged. Scrutinizing the foundations of political behavior, the book offers a new perspective on collective participation.

Ethnic Minorities and Equal Treatment: The Impact of Gender, Equal Opportunities Policies and Trade Unions

2001 ◽  
Vol 176 ◽  
pp. 105-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mike Noon ◽  
Kim Hoque
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minority ◽  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Equal Treatment ◽  
Equal Opportunities ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Non Union ◽  
Minority Men ◽  
The Impact

The article examines whether ethnic minority employees report poorer treatment at work than white employees, and evaluates the impact of three key features — gender differences, formal equal opportunities policies and trade union recognition. The analysis reveals that ethnic minority men and women receive poorer treatment than their white counterparts. In addition, there is evidence to suggest that ethnic minority women receive poorer treatment than ethnic minority men. Equal opportunities policies are effective in ensuring equal treatment, but the presence of a recognised trade union is not. White men and women in unionised workplaces enjoy better treatment than their white counterparts in non-union workplaces, but the same is not true for ethnic minorities. By contrast, there is very little evidence of unequal treatment in non-union workplaces.

scholarly journals Barriers to Biosimilar Prescribing Incentives in the Context of Clinical Governance in Spain

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 283
Author(s):  
Félix Lobo ◽  
Isabel Río-Álvarez
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
National Level ◽  
Professional Associations ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Clinical Governance ◽  
Monetary Incentives ◽  
Public System ◽  
The Public ◽  
Micro Level

Incentives contribute to the proper functioning of the broader contracts that regulate the relationships between health systems and professionals. Likewise, incentives are an important element of clinical governance understood as health services’ management at the micro-level, aimed at achieving better health outcomes for patients. In Spain, monetary and non-monetary incentives are sometimes used in the health services, but not as frequently as in other countries. There are already several examples in European countries of initiatives searching the promotion of biosimilars through different sorts of incentives, but not in Spain. Hence, this paper is aimed at identifying the barriers that incentives to prescribe biosimilars might encounter in Spain, with particular interest in incentives in the framework of clinical governance. Both questions are intertwined. Barriers are presented from two perspectives. Firstly, based on the nature of the barrier: (i) the payment system for health professionals, (ii) budget rigidity and excessive bureaucracy, (iii) little autonomy in the management of human resources (iv) lack of clinical integration, (v) absence of a legal framework for clinical governance, and (vi) other governance-related barriers. The second perspective is based on the stakeholders involved: (i) gaps in knowledge among physicians, (ii) misinformation and distrust among patients, (iii) trade unions opposition to productivity-related payments, (iv) lack of a clear position by professional associations, and (v) misalignment of the goals pursued by some healthcare professionals and the goals of the public system. Finally, the authors advance several recommendations to overcome these barriers at the national level.

scholarly journals The Phenomenon of Digital Labour Platforms

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 217-229
Author(s):  
Andrzej Marian Świątkowski
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Fundamental Rights ◽  
Equal Treatment ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Right ◽  
Almost All

In all EU Member States the status of people employed on job platforms is not fully legally regulated. It is necessary to consider the sources of the contemporary phenomenon of electronic employment, which is not amenable to legal regulation in the Union constituting an “area of freedom, security and justice with respect for fundamental rights” (Art. 67 (1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union). The right to work in decent conditions, with adequate remuneration, belongs to this category of rights. In the discussion on employment platforms state authorities are more inclined to consider issues related to new technologies, processes and changes caused by the development and application of modern digital technologies (digitization) in almost all areas. The headquarters of trade unions mainly discuss the legal position of employees and the role of employment platforms in employment relations in the post-industrial era. Entrepreneurs and their organizations, including private institutions and employment platforms, are interested in equal treatment by national legislators in local labour markets. They are afraid of the breach of the balance favorable to their own economic interests, caused by the public interest in the possibility of using employment in atypical forms of employment. Services consisting in employment provided under employment platforms are incomparably cheaper than identical work performed by employees employed under employment contracts.

Listening in on the Neighbors: The Reception of German and Austrian Radio in Cold War Czechoslovakia

2021 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 603-620
Author(s):  
Rosamund Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Central Europe ◽  
German Language ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Listening Habits ◽  
National Boundaries ◽  
Radio Free Europe

AbstractIn 1966, a Radio Free Europe (RFE) report estimated that seven in ten Czechs and Slovaks listened to Radio Vienna, making it the most popular foreign station in Czechoslovakia. Yet conventional narratives of Western radio in socialist central Europe highlight the role played by runner-up RFE. By focusing on the practice of listening to German-language radio in Czechoslovakia between 1945 and 1969, this article shows that cross-border, German-language listening mattered not only between the Germanies, but also in central Europe, where listening habits were shaped by the region's multilingual heritage. In addition to highlighting German's significance as a language of regional communication, the article reveals the importance of cross-border contacts and the significance of light entertainment in Cold War central Europe. Rather than separating listeners out by citizenship, foreign radio listening fostered solidarities that cut across national boundaries and divided people by generation, geography, class, and technical dexterity instead.

Transnational Solidarity of Salafi ʿUlama

2021 ◽  
pp. 30-62
Author(s):  
Raihan Ismail
Keyword(s):  
Political Islam ◽  
Transnational Networks ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
History Of ◽  
National Boundaries ◽  
Transnational Solidarity ◽  
Cross National

This chapter examines the history of transnational networks of Salafi ʿulama in the context of Islamism. It looks at the emergence of Salafi cross-border connections which began as apolitical, but gradually mutated, witnessing the development of the activist haraki trend. The chapter then examines how both haraki and quietist ʿulama forged regional alliances to preserve their interpretations of political Islam by endorsing other ʿulama of similar views. These interactions cross national boundaries, and take place within the framework of domestic, regional, and global political circumstances. The chapter analyzes whether these political circumstances foster or destabilize the networks of ʿulama as they attempt to construct and maintain Salafi political or apolitical identity.

The impact of the NAFTA treaty on wage competition, immigration, labor standards and cross-border co-operation

2001 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 494-514 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfredo Hualde ◽  
Miguel Angel Ramírez
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Free Trade Agreement ◽  
Trade Agreement ◽  
Living Standards ◽  
Labor Standards ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
The North ◽  
Economic Area ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Impact

The signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1993 led to the formation of a social and economic area characterized by marked asymmetry between its members: the USA, Mexico and Canada. Seven years later the results in terms of salaries, employment and labor standards are not very positive, although they have not produced the catastrophic results foreseen by some. In Mexico several hundred thousand jobs were created, especially in the maquiladora export industry, but this has been associated with falling living standards and rising poverty. Migration from Mexico to the USA has increased. Poor labor standards and illegal employment have led to collaboration between NGOs and trade unions on both sides of the frontier.

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