Your search

The article reviews the book, "The Life of an Unknown: The Rediscovered World of a Clog Maker in 19th-Century France," by Alain Corbin.

The book, "Trade Unions in Europe: Meeting the Challenge," edited by Deoborah Foster and Peter Scott, is reviewed.

The book, "Employment Stability in an Age of Flexibility: Evidence from Industrialized Countries," edited by Peter Auer and Sandrine Cazes.

This article presents an empirical research on the determinants of employees' participation in non-mandatory training offered by their employer. The analysis model identified two groups of determinants, i.e. socio-demographic (age, gender, family responsibilities and education level) and employment-related (organizational tenure, hierarchical position and employment status). Participants, mostly female, were employees from a large Canadian service organization. Results showed that age negatively influenced participation, that women participated more than men, and that the education level was negatively related to participation. Findings also indicated a non-linear relationship between organizational tenure and participation, and that the probability of participation in non-mandatory training increased with the hierarchical position occupied. Family responsibilities and employment status were not found to be significant predictors of participation. [PUBLICATON ABSTRACT]

Stuart Jamieson was the author of the first book in English on the subject of Canadian industrial relations, Industrial Relations in Canada, published in 1957. This classic work was concise, clearly written and notable for its analysis of Canadian industrial relations in the broader North American context. These two books were only part of Jamieson's contributions to industrial relations. His dissertation documented the struggle of American (and Canadian) farm workers to achieve representation. Stuart Jamieson taught economics and sociology at University of British Columbia from 1945 until his retirement in 1980.

The book, "Crise d’identité professionnelle et professionnalisme," edited by Georges A. Legault.

The article reviews the book, "Liberty or Death. Early Struggles for Parliamentary Democracy," by Ray Hemmings.

There is general agreement that public sector bargaining has evolved through three stages: the expansionary years (mid-1960s to 1982), the restraint years (1982-1990) and the retrenchment years (1990s). This paper argues that public sector collective bargaining entered a new stage of development around 1998. The post-retrenchment period or what is referred to as the consolidation stage was marked by economic expansion, the restoration of fiscal stability among the senior levels of government and increases in public employment. Under these conditions, governments and public sector employers sought to consolidate the gains they achieved during the retrenchment years through legislation and hard bargaining. Public sector unions attempted to improve their position by increasing membership and negotiating catch-up wage settlements. Based on a review of selected collective bargaining indicators, employers appear to have consolidated their gains from the retrenchment years.

The book, "The Paradox of American Unionism," by Seymour Martin Lipset and Noah M. Meltz, is reviewed.

The article reviews the book, "The Next Upsurge: Labor and the New Social Movements," by Dan Clawson.

The article reviews the book, "Federalism, Democracy, and Labour Market Policy in Canada," edited by Tom McIntosh.

In the turbulent 1960s Canadians debated foreign control of the Canadian economy and Canada’s relations with the United States. The Canadian section of the United Auto Workers (UAW) also struggled with these questions as it faced a number of government policies designed to bolster the auto industry and solve balance of payments difficulties, culminating in the 1965 Canada-United States Auto motive Products Trade Agreement (auto pact). The auto pact rationalized the Canadian Big Three (General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler) production into their parent corporations and by 1970 the Canadian industry was fully integrated into a continental system of North American automobile manufacturing. The Canadian UAW played an ineffectual role in shaping this transformation, one which rekindled and exacerbated conflict within the membership and between militant locals and the union’s leadership. Nonetheless, by the end of the decade, the union had become a strong advocate of the new continental auto regime, a reflection of the increased employment and production resulting from the changes. The essay explains the issues the union faced in this period and some of the long-term consequences which the continentalization of the auto industry had on the union.

While long life society constitutes progress in terms of healthier, better and longer lives, it is also associated with higher pension and health expenditures to an extent that threatens the long term adequacy and sustainability of existing welfare systems. It therefore requires adaptation on the part of society and of social institutions and policies, in particular the labour market and the welfare systems, in order to stem or even reduce the growing dependency ratios of the population. This article thus starts by signalling the six main changes that have occurred in the European Union and US labour markets and the workforce, which concern in particular women in all age groups. It then highlights the main responses of the welfare systems to these changes, emphasizing activation measures and indicating their successes and shortcomings. The article concludes by suggesting policies that may enhance female activity and employment rates, from both the labour supply and demand perspectives.

The article reviews the book, "Politics of the Womb: Women, Reproduction, and the State in Kenya," by Lynn M. Thomas.

The article reviews the book, "Death of a Nation: American Culture and the End of Exceptionalism," by David W. Noble.

The article reviews the book, "The State of Working America 2002/2003," by Lawrence Mishel, Jared Bernstein, and Heather Boushey.

In response to increasing public concern over the accountability of transnational corporations (TNCs) for violations of human rights in the states in which they operate, governments, corporations and NGOs have promoted the development and implementation of voluntary self-regulatory regimes. However, TNC practices under these regimes call into question their adequacy and effectiveness in preventing complicity in egregious violations of human rights by corporations operating in conflict zones and repressive regimes. This article reviews and assesses the language, human rights content and compliance mechanisms of the voluntary policies and/or codes developed by a number of corporations, industry groups, intergovernmental organizations and multistakeholder initiatives, as well as associated corporate practices. The analysis shows that these voluntary regimes are flawed and inadequate, and therefore unable to ensure that TNCs are not complicit in human rights violations in their extraterritorial activities.

The article reviews the book, "Women, Gender, and Transnational Lives: Italian Workers of the World," edited by Jan Kok.