*** SONIA MORANO-FOADI, LUCY VICKERS (Eds.): Fundamental Rights in the EU. A Matter for Two Courts. Hart Publishing (16C Worcester Place, Oxford, OX1 2JW, UK. Tel: (44-1865) 517530 - Fax: 510710 - Email: mail@hartpub.co.uk - Internet: http://www.hartpub.co.uk ). "Modern Studies in European Law" series. 2015, 250 pp, £59.99. ISBN 978-1-84946-707-0.
Sonia Morano-Foadi and Lucy Vickers express astonishment at the start of the introduction to this book that the European Union has well outstripped the realm, over the decades, of the simple economic integration project that was assigned to it at the start, when it was known by another name. But that is forgetting that economic integration, in the view of Monnet and Schuman, was only ever a first step in the achievement of an eminently political project, viz. establishing a 'European federation,' as is clearly stated in the 'Schuman Declaration' of 9 May 1951. Should one therefore be surprised if “elements of supranationality have 'spilled over'” since then fromthe economic domain into other policies and powers? Only people who go to great lengths to believe that the history of the European construction project began with the Treaties of Rome in 1957 could maintain this illusion. Where the book's editors are undoubtedly perfectly right, however, is when they point out that the Lisbon Treaty took the Union into 'a new era of integration' called upon to be 'based on human rights,' given the binding nature of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and, also, the extension of the CJEU's jurisdiction to domains such as asylum, immigration and judicial cooperation.
This has led to the organisation of two conferences (one at Oxford in January 2013, the other at the Council of Europe headquarters in June 2014) which saw academics, judges and political decision-makers discuss the legal framework for the protection of fundamental rights in Europe and reflect on the relationship between the CJEU in Luxembourg and the ECtHR in Strasbourg. The latter issue was addressed in the light of the 'green light' given by the Lisbon Treaty to the EU joining the European Convention of Human Rights, and also the European Court of Justice's decision on 18 December 2014 to consider the Accession Agreement incompatible with EU law. In this connection, the book opens with a prologue by Jörg Polakiewicz (professor at Saarbrucken University's European Institute and legal advisor to the Council of Europe), who calls for the EU's joining the convention to be seen as 'a matter of coherence and consistency.' Beyond this accession issue, the author brought together in these pages look, among other things, at the consequences that current changes or potential changes might have for protection of the fundamental rights of European citizens and anyone legally residing in Europe, be these rights in the domain of equivalence of employment rights, citizenship and migration, or fundamental freedoms and access to justice.
The book is divided into three parts. The first focuses on interaction between the two Courts, with Sonia Morano-Foadi and Lucy Vickers (who are both law lecturers at Oxford Brookes University) explaining in the introduction, that even without imminent accession, 'the interplay between the Courts and the use of the Convention should probably continue, and guide EU jurisprudence, constituting the minimum standard of protection in Europe.' The contributions, however, highlight the fact that the European Court of Justice 'is still tempted to continue traditional interpretive approaches due to its structural characteristics,' although it should have ensured the 'autonomy of EU law by disregarding the fundamental values upon which the Union was founded.' Another author explains that what has emerged from this that the two courts have developed totally different approaches to the EU joining the Convention, which is why 'any post-accession relationship will represent one of the most controversial issues to be resolved in any future Accession Agreement.' The second part of the book is devoted to 'the fundamental rights quest,' with one author pointing out in terms of the balance to be struck between economic interests and social policy concerns, the judges in Luxembourg seem 'much more rigorous with regard to Member States' measures impeding the exercise of fundamental freedoms, rather than when reviewing the legality of EU institutions' acts,' not to mention the very clear tendency they had before the Lisbon Treaty (to prefer to promote European integration and the Union's fundamental freedoms rather than the fundamental rights that it is supposed to grant) has not yet totally disappeared. The third part of the book is fully devoted to the question of joining the Convention and is clearly just as interesting. This review only provides a very superficial description of the rich legal analyses developed in this book.
Michel Theys
*** DENIS MARTIN, MARC MORSA, PHILIPPE GOSSERIES (Eds.): Droit du travail européen. Questions spéciales. Editions Larcier (Groupe Larcier, 39 rue des Minimes, B-1000 Brussels. Tel: (32-2) 5480713 - Fax: 5480714 - Email: commande@larciergroup.com - Internet: http://www.larcier.com ). "Droit social" series. 2015, 878 pp, €86. ISBN 978-2-8044-4696-3.
Here is a cornerstone that deserves attention. Written by young lawyers from the Université Catholique de Louvain who, spurred by Philippe Gosseries (emeritus advisor at the Belgian Appeals Court) and Marc Morsa (lawyer-strategist at the Belgian ministry of social security) with the active support of Professors Dorssemont and Van Gehuchten, have made an in-depth analysis of a number of special issues - some of which are particularly of the moment - raised by European labour law. It is enough to know that the first heading in the book is devoted to the austerity policy chosen by the authorities against the backdrop of 'the financial, economic, social and societal crisis of 2008-2014' and its 'positive and negative effects on social Europe, particularly the freedoms to circulate within the European Union,' to understand that the authors are intellectually grappling with hot potatoes. In the preface, Filip Dorssemont jumps right in intellectually when he points out that 'the expression of labour law is far from obvious' in the context of the Union, since it is clear that the 'economic governance or internal market measures tend to engulf member states' labour market acquis, including what are called workers' fundamental rights.' Not to mention the fact, he adds, that 'not all European policies leading to a certain harmonisation or coordination lf member states' labour law are inspired by the same paradigm' of social protection. Does this mean that the book is an implacable indictment of the Union's action in this domain? No, because right from the introduction, in which Philippe Gosseries raises a number of 'current aspects' of the meeting of 'juridical humanism and European labour law,' certain nuances are introduced in the light of the studies contained in the book. For example, one should sometimes ask whether the decisions taken by the authorities to save both the euro, States and banks have complied with the Union's Charter of Fundamental Rights - which is the consecration of 'undeniable social progress' and a 'carrier of hope for European integration' - in terms of their 'austerity effects caused to the detriment of welfare provisions and European citizens' living conditions.' This is one of the lessons that can be drawn from the first two sections of the book. The other 'special issues' then addressed concern patients' right to cross-border care, the freedom of circulation for European citizens who are not economically active, job protection and security, the real effectiveness of fundamental social rights for the secondment of workers in the framework of the supply of services, the protection of workers' personal data and, in fine, worker information and consultation. (MT)
*** Politique. Revue de débats. ASBL Politique (9 rue du Faucon, B-1000 Brussels. Tel: (32-2) 5386996 - Email: secretariat@politique.eu.org - Internet: http://politique.eu.org ). 'Les hors-série de politique' series. October 2015, 50 pp. Subscription: €40.
Published on the occasion of the 93rd Christian Workers' Movement's social week, this special issue is devoted to the problem of sustainable development around the world and more particularly to the option of extending social security everywhere for as Secretary General Pierre Goris explains: 'Social security is not a barrier to competitiveness, but a factor of economic development,' helping to provide a 'structural solution' to poverty. This is far from assured, explains François-Xavier Merrien (of Lausanne University) in an assessment of the international situation, while Olivier De Schutter (Université Catholique de Louvain) deals with the question of how to finance global protection, following the United Nations' General Assembly's decisions to adopt sustainable development targets, of which social protection and reducing inequality are central elements. In passing, the man who was the special rapporteur for the right to food at the UN's Human Rights Council from 2008 to 2014 points out that in the light of what is happening in Greece, 'the South is here with us.' Overall, the special report makes a highly comprehensive case. (MT)
*** TOM CHRISTOPHER PRÖSTLER: Modelle betrieblicher Arbeitnehmerbeteiligung, ein historisch-europäischer Rechtsvergleich zwischen Deutschland und dem Vereinigten Königreich. Peter Lang (1 Moosstrasse, P.O. 350, CH-2542 Pieterlen. Tel: (41-32) 3761717 - Fax: 3761727 - Email: info@peterlang.com - Internet: http://www.peterlang.com ). "Schriften zum Arbeitsrecht und Wirtschaftsrecht" series. 2015, 252 pp, €61,95. ISBN 978-3-631-65955-7.
This thesis by Tom Christopher Pröstler provides a comparative study of worker participation in corporate life in Germany and the United Kingdom. His analysis is set in a historical perspective and, in terms of legislation, it reveals a clear difference between Germany on the one hand, where worker participation is regulated by law for the most part, and the United Kingdom on the other, where legislation in this domain is virtually non- existent, while the European legislator only regulates a pedestal of the smallest common denominator among the different member states. In real life, the differences between Germany and Britain are not, however, quite as stark as study of their respective legislation would have one believe: the author reaches this conclusion after to both countries the worker participation models that complete this juridical and historical analysis of the question. (GLe)
*** HENDRIK SCHULTE-WREDE: Die Beteiligung der Arbeitnehmer in der Europäischen Privatgesellschaft - SPE. Peter Lang (see above). "Schriften zum Arbeitsrecht und Wirtschaftsrecht" series. 2015, 660 pp, €117. ISBN 978-3-631-66236-6.
Hendrik Schulte-Wrede's thesis looks at worker participation in the light of companies at supranational level in the framework of the European private company (Societas Privata Europaea), a European Union proposal to create a European company status suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises and also, in some cases, for big consortiums. The author gives detailed and richly documented information about progress in the establishment of this new type of company, along with dealing with the question of worker participation in corporate life in European Union countries. He completes his doctorate by drawing up a contrasting balance sheet of the issue in the light of various categories of countries while also by putting forward proposals for ensuring progress in worker participation in Europe. (GLe)
*** HENRYK DOMANSKI: The Polish Middle Class. Peter Lang (1 Moosstrasse, P.O. Box 350, CH-2542 Pieterlen. Tel: (41-32) 3761717 - Fax: 3761727 - Email: info@peterlang.com - Internet: http://www.peterlang.com ). 'Studies in Social Science, Philosophy and History of Ideas,' No. 13. 2015, 140 pp, €24.95. ISBN 978-3-631-64726-4.
Written by a sociologist lecturing at the Polish Academy of Science, this study provides answers to the question of the viability in Poland of a middle class imply imported from the Western world. The author reveals the processes characteristic of his own country that are at play and discerns the factors encouraging or hindering the rise of a Polish middle class. He points out that in the West, the members of this class usually combine 'sober materialism of entrepreneurial individualism' with liberal, tolerant opinions, but this mix is rather the characteristic of the intelligentsia in Poland. He validates four hypotheses: i) experts, higher education staff and company owners are the best placed to contribute to the emergence of a Polish middle class, their professional positions, university studies and financial status, among other things, being comparable with those that prevail in the West; ii) the 1990s were a step forward in the process of forming a middle class, perceptible notably in consumption habits; iii) changes in attitude, life objectives and values systems, however, are rather slow and ambiguous, not to mention the fact that they do not totally correspond to the norms that prevail in the rest of the Western world, since for many Poles, personal 'success' is not the main driving force; iv) and therefore, asserts Henry Domanski, 'the middle class in Poland will not emerge as an exact copy of the western model of the middle class' since it is called upon to adapt to specifically Polish characteristics. (PBo)