*** JORN HENRIK PETERSEN, KLAUS PETERSEN (Eds.): The Politics of Age. Basic Pension Systems in a Comparative and Historical Perspective. Peter Lang (1 Moosstrasse, Postfach 350, CH-2542 Pieterlen. Tel: (41-32) 3761717 - Fax: 3761727 - email: info@peterlang.com - Internet: http://www.peterlang.com ). 2009, 225 pp. ISBN 978-3-631-58191-9.
It is now clear to common mortals that the problem of how to pay for people's retirement pensions is a time-bomb that is ticking away relentlessly and about to go off. This is particularly clear to people who for whatever reason have to find a way of avoiding the worst case scenario. As far as the world of politics is concerned, this issue is sheer dynamite and feeds nightmares aplenty, whether in terms of the impact on finance, the budget or social affairs. The main merit of this book, following on from an international conference organised in April 2007 by the University of Southern Denmark to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Danish state pension system, is to demonstrate that it is a complete pipedream to try and ensure pensions systems survive by inventing a new system through reforms that do not take account of the past or the legacy and dynamics in people's collective culture and mindsets created by existing pension schemes.
In fact, as far as the academics behind this series of multi-disciplinary essays by economists, political scientists and historians are concerned, the challenges now facing us cannot be properly understood without casting one's mind back over history and examining how national pension systems were set up and have changed over time. The editors explain in the introduction that this historical overview is even more important in that it shows observers that there is a close connection between the historical development of pension systems and the way they are currently challenged by economic, demographic and political and ideological changes, not to mention the fact that this approach also enables observes to put into context ideas that are often very stereotypical about the differences between different countries' pension systems. Comparative studies of Germany, the UK and Hungary, along with representatives of the co-called 'Scandinavian' model (Denmark and Sweden), demonstrate very clearly that no pure model exists. The Danish, Continental European and Anglo-Saxon models are just types of ideal (prototypes), but all the countries supposed to embody the various types of system actually marry all three types of pension funding.
Based on the historical overview and the demonstration of reliance on the trajectory characterising the pension system over time in each country in question (also in terms of the experience of the inhabitants concerned), the authors look at potential or already existing institutional blockages and the ability and resources to successfully implement reform. This then leads them to analyse the views of the various political stakeholders. This enlightening book will be very useful for researchers and for politicians trying to find their way and gain a sure footing in this veritable Bermuda Triangle of pensions systems…
Pierre Bouvier
*** EULALIA RUBIO: L'Europe sociale et la crise: repenser l'agenda. Notre Europe (Paris. email: info@notre-europe.eu - Internet: http://www.notre-europe.eu ). Policy Paper No. 36. 2009, 37 pp.
Available free of charge in English and French from the website of a foundation close to Jacques Delors (Notre Europe) that is now headed by Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa, this brief study examines the social consequences of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. The young Spanish lawyer and political science researcher who wrote it argues that the economic and financial tidal waves afflicting the world make it necessary to examine how to protect the European social model and how to reform social governance modes in the European Union. The author makes no bones about the depths of the potential social impact of the economic crisis, that might even go as far as to rock the political foundations of the EU if European leaders persist in making do with measures that try to return to the old financial system and encourage economic recovery. Recovery measures are required, of course, but they have to be accompanied by social answers on a par with the scale of the challenges because if Europeans do not believe that some of the protection they receive is guaranteed by the EU, then the EU will be opening itself up to a return to powerful forces of nationalism and protectionism, not to mention the fact that it could even become the target of their bitterness if the EU were to be seen (as it already is in some quarters) as a faceless bureaucracy that forces countries to take action that is damaging to national interests. The crisis can be turned into an opportunity, however, if the EU27 takes advantage of it to reform social governance and move away from the 'soft methods' that have been found to be so ineffective in the Lisbon Strategy and if it also avoids the temptation to simply trying to get people into work.
(MT)
*** DOROTHEE HÖCH: Beschäftigungspolitik im Gemeinschaftsrecht. Studien zum Öffentlichen Recht, Völker - und Europarecht. Peter Lang (see above). 2009, 532 pp, €79-50. ISBN 978-3-631-58454-5
People are calling these days for the European Union to be given greater powers over areas that were in the past left in the hands of the Member States, like social policy, which has given rise to the most comment (and will no doubt continue to do so in the future), particularly about the future of employment policy. The EU dimension of employment policy seemed to have been shored up by the Lisbon Strategy at the turn of the century. Ever since the Maastricht Treaty, in fact, the EU has had powers in the field of employment. What powers does the EU have they exactly? This is the question answered by this book. The first section looks at the concept of employment policy and strategies introduced by the Member States. Dorothée Höch meshes legal, political and economic considerations in her analysis. In rest of the book, the author provides a detailed legal analysis of the Maastricht Treaty's measures on employment policy, going on to examine the measures' impact.
(JD)
*** PETER JANSEN, OTMAR SEUL (Ed.): Das erweiterte Europa: Arbeitnehmerbeteilingung an der Entscheidungsfindung im Unternehmen - L 'Europe élargie: la participation des salariés aux décisions dans l'entreprise. Traditionen im Westen, Innovationen im Osten? - Traditions à l'Ouest, innovations à l'Est? Peter Lang (see above). "Travaux Interdisciplinaires et Plurilingues en Langues Etrangères" series, No. 11. 2009, 438 pp, €63-50. ISBN 978-3-03911-669-0.
After the recent waves of EU enlargement to the East, various conflicts between old and new Member States have become visible, particularly questions relating to worker involvement in company decision-making. Such disagreements are a particular handicap as Europe tries to assert the European social model. How can one talk about a European social model, given that there are a range of different traditions in Western Europe alone? The first part of this book examines this question. The authors look in the first chapters at the history of 'social Europe' and its significance as different new countries have joined the club. The question of worker participation in company decision-making is studied in the second and third parts of the book. The various traditions of West European countries are described, followed by the situation prevailing in Eastern Europe. Several national case studies are described, along with recent changes to the system in East European countries' social system following membership of the European Union.
(JD)
*** SHARON KLEINMAN (Ed.): The Culture of Efficiency. Technology in Everyday Life. Peter Lang (see above). Digital Formation series, No. 55. 2009, 390 pp, €22-50. ISBN 978-1-4331-0420-6.
Written by scientists active in communications and new technology, this book look at how the latest technological inventions like mobile phones, net books, GPS and the like are used in daily life and how this helps and impacts on users. At a time when making the best use of one's time is more important than anything else, whether work time at leisure time, the authors examine the way individuals, organisations, society and the environment tend to react to efficiency technologies in areas like food, the internet, spirituality, education, environment and transport. The book explores the often unexpected consequences and damage caused by such technologies in these domains and suggests ways of how to integrate this technology into one's life and indications of how modern technology is likely to impact on work and leisure in the future.
(NDu)
*** L'Europe au féminin: pour une vraie parité - Women in Europe: reaching parity. Fondation Robert Schuman (6 Rond-point Schuman, B-1040 Brussels. Tel: (32-2) 2347826 - Fax: 2347772 - Internet: http://www.robert-schuman.eu ). 2009, 12 pp.
This publication (accompanied by a DVD) follows on from a conference held at the European Parliament in November 2009 and attended by people involved in the broad question of parity between men and women in political life (not just 'politics') and the potentially related issue of women's relative lack of involvement in European issues. The conference was the culmination of a series of seminars organised in 2009 by the European Commission in Spain, France, Greece, the Czech Republic and Romania as part of the 'Europe for Citizens' programme.
(MT)
*** Hesamag. European Trade Union Institute, Health and Safety Department, 5 Bld. du Roi Albert II, B-1210 Brussels. Tel: (32-2) 2240560 - Fax: 2240561 - email: hesa@etui.org - Internet: http://www.etui.org ). 2009, No. 1, 50 pp.
It was a very successful move by the European Trade Union Institute for Health and Safety at Work to have turned its HESA Newsletter into this highly attractive twice-yearly publication which is as attractive visually as it is in terms of wealth of content. As health and safety at work is largely ignored by the media and the current crisis is unlikely to encourage political decision-makers and captains to industry to put it very high on their agendas, it was a good idea for this section of the European Trade Union Confederation to launch a newsletter to encourage action in this domain. This first issue hits the nail on the head, providing a very detailed special report on the question of nanotechnology, a revolutionary technology expected by some to be highly beneficial and by others to be highly damaging. The question that runs throughout the different articles is whether the European Union will be able to strike the right balance as it ranges between fascination with technology that could enable it to put its dream of becoming the world's most competitive economy into practice and fear of creating an unprecedented health catastrophe. The editors agree that lauding benefits for society must not be abused to legitimise the use of nanotechnologies without democratic control and scrutiny.
(MT)
*** VALERIE ROSSO-DEBORD: "Paquet pharmaceutique": pour une santé encore mieux protégée. Commission des Affaires européennes (Boutique de l'Assemblée nationale, 7 rue Aristide Briand, F-75007 Paris. Tel: (33-1) 40630033 - Internet: http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr ). "Documents d'information" series, No. 1997. 2009, 63 pp, €3-50. ISBN 978-2-11-125819-8.
In this newsletter, a French parliamentarian assesses the five draft directives and the draft regulation in the EU's pharma package unveiled by the European Commission in December 2008. The author approves of the legislation on monitoring pharmaceutical products and fighting counterfeit medicines but is critical of the draft EU rules on information for the general public that fail to sufficiently distinguish between information for prescription-only medicine and marketing.
(PBo)
*** JOAQUIM MELO: Viva favela! Quand les démunis prennent leur destin en main. Éditions Michel Lafon (7-13 Bld Paul-Émile Victor, Ile de la Jatte, F-92521 Neuilly-sur-Seine. Internet: http://www.michel-lafon.com ). 2009, 284 pp, €17-95. ISBN 978-2-7499-1112-0.
The idea of using alternatives to money to create social networks arises from time to time, only to sink back into oblivion because as pleasant as it may sound, the idea remains on the fringes of dominant ideas about the economy. Joaquim Melo went to work in a Brazilian favela (shanty town) in the early 1980s as a worker priest. He has left the faith but remains in the favela where, flying in the face of advice from the Brazilian central bank, he has set up an alternative currency and a bank to stimulate the local economy by means of microloans, which have helped him take on and make inroads into tackling poverty. He describes his experiences in this book, ending it by saying that he knows that turning the favela into paradise will be a long and winding road but with hindsight, he sees that it can be done. A good fight to be fought by all and a beacon of hope!
(MT)
*** ESSE AMOUZOU: Pauvreté, chômage et émigration des jeunes Africains. Quelles alternatives? L'Harmattan (5-7 rue de l'École polytechnique, F-75005 Paris. Tel: (33-1) 40467920 - Fax: 43258203 - email: diffusion.harmattan@wanadoo.fr - Internet: http://www.librairieharmattan.com ). 2009, 271 pp, €24-50. ISBN 978-2-296-10534-8.
In this book, the sociologist author argues for viable policies in African countries to deal with poverty, failing which the only future worthy of its name for young Africans will be to emigrate to Europe.
(PBo)