Economic and social regulation of global workforce

The aim of the course is to provide students with a conceptual and analytical framework for understanding the main trends and problems affecting the regulation of labour in a context of intensified economic internationalisation. In so doing, the course introduces the basic concepts for the analysis of employment relations and their regulation, while at the same time focussing on key issues currently debated in employment relations research. The course also aims to address the impact of labour market institutions on economic performance, especially in the framework of the EU and the EMU and with particular attention to the shift from a Keynesian to a monetarist macro-economic regime.

By the end of the course, students will acquire knowledge and develop in-depth understanding of the systems of employment relations, the challenges they are exposed to and their current transformations, as well as the effects of these changes on patterns of labour market inequalities and economic performance. Students will learn how to critically apply such knowledge to the analysis of recent developments in labour and employment relations across Europe, the US, Japan and Australia. They will also acquire the ability to use the specific terminology of employment relations research and to critically examine employment relations issues.