Challenging The Market

by Stanford, Jim; Vosko, Leah F.; Challenging the Market Conference

• ISBN13: 9780773527270
• ISBN10: 0773527273
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-12-01
• Publisher: McGill Queens Univ

Summary

For two decades economic and social policy in most of the world has been guided by the notion that economies function best when they are fully exposed to competitive market forces. In labour market policy, this approach is reflected in the widespread emphasis on "flexibility" - a euphemism for the retrenchment of income support and social security, the relaxation of labour market regulations, and the enhanced power of private actors to determine the terms of the employment relationship. These strategies have had marked effects on labour market outcomes, leading to greater vulnerability and polarization - and not always in ways that enhance worker-centred flexibility. The authors offer a more balanced analysis of the functioning and effects of labour market regulation and deregulation. By questioning the underpinnings of the "flexibility" paradigm, and revealing its often damaging impacts (on different countries, sectors, and constituencies), they challenge the conclusion that unregulated market forces produce optimal labour market outcomes. The authors conclude with several suggestions for how labour policy could be reformulated to promote both efficiency and equity.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	vii
Challenging the Market: The Struggle to Regulate Work and Income	3	(30)
Jim Stanford
Leah F. Vosko
PART ONE: THE CHANGING ECONOMICS OF LABOUR MARKET REGULATION
The Nairu, Labour Market ``Flexibility,'' and Full Employment	33	(18)
Malcolm Sawyer
The Causes of High Unemployment: Labour Market Sclerosis versus Macroeconomic Policy	51	(24)
Thomas I. Palley
Institutions and Policies for Labour Market Success in Four Small European Countries	75	(22)
Peter Auer
PART TWO: DEVELOPMENTS IN LABOUR MARKET STRUCTURE
Challenging Segmentation in South Africa's Labour Market: ``Regulated Flexibility'' or Flexible Regulation?	97	(22)
Marlea Clarke
The Russian Reforms and Their Impact on Labour: A Transition to What?	119	(16)
Manfred Bienefeld
Tatyana Chetvernina
Liana Lakunina
Deregulating Industrial Relations in the Apparel Sector: The Decree System in Quebec	135	(16)
Michel Grant
European Labour Market Regulation: The Case of European Works Councils	151	(24)
Michael John Whittall
PART THREE: THE DIFFERENTIAL EFFECTS OF LABOUR MARKET DEREGULATION
Racializing the Division of Labour: Neoliberal Restructuring and the Economic Segregation of Canada's Racialized Groups	175	(30)
Grace-Edward Galabuzi
Towards Perfect Flexibility: Youth as an Industrial Reserve Army for the New Economy	205	(22)
Stephen McBride
The Crisis in Rural Labour Markets: Failures and Challenges for Regulation	227	(19)
Martha MacDonald
Technology, Gender, and Regulation: Call Centres in New Brunswick	246	(19)
Tom Good
Joan McFarland
Neoliberalism, Social Democracy, and the Struggle to Improve Labour Standards for Part-time Workers in Saskatchewan	265	(24)
Dave Broad
Della MacNeil
Sandra Salhani Gamble
PART FOUR: ALTERNATIVE VISIONS
Labour Market Deregulation and the U.S. Living-Wage Movement	289	(20)
Stephanie Luce
Gendered Resistance: Organizing Justice for Janitors in Los Angeles	309	(21)
Cynthia J. Cranford
Labour's Current Organizational Struggles in Argentina: Towards a New Beginning?	330	(16)
Viviana Patroni
Critical Times for French Employment Regulation: The 35--Hour Week and the Challenge to Social Partnership	346	(19)
Steve Jefferys
How Credible Are International Corporate Labour Codes? Monitoring Global Production Chains	365	(20)
Don Wells
Contributors	385