1st Edition

Parties, Elections, and Policy Reforms in Western Europe Voting for Social Pacts

By Kerstin Hamann, John Kelly Copyright 2011
254 Pages 8 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

240 Pages 8 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

240 Pages 8 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

Social pacts – policy agreements between governments, labor unions and sometimes employer organizations – began to emerge in many countries in the 1980s. The most common explanations for social pacts tend to focus on economic factors, influenced by industrial relations institutions such as highly coordinated collective bargaining. This book presents, and tests, an alternative and complementary... Read more

1. Introduction: The Puzzle of Social Pacts  2. The Institutional Political Economy of Social Pacts: A Critical Appraisal  3. The Political Logic of Social Pacts  4. Governments, Voters, and Social Pacts in Western Europe  5. The Divergent Trajectories of Social Pacts in the LMEs: Ireland and the UK  6. Social Democracy between Pacts and Legislation in Scandinavia: Sweden and Finland  7. Cycles of Social Pacts in the Mediterranean Economies: Spain and Italy  8. Tripartism under Duress in Coordinated Market Economies: Germany and Austria  9. Conclusion: The Electoral Politics of Social Pacts

Biography

Kerstin Hamann is Professor of Political Science at the University of Central Florida. She is the co-author of Institutions and Democratic Development and Assessment in Political Science.

John Kelly is Professor of Industrial Relations, Birkbeck College, University of London, UK. His books include Union Organization and Activity and Rethinking Industrial Relations (both published by Routledge).