Jelle Visser – författare

Through a coordinated analysis of industrial relations in specific European nations, the book gives a representative, up-to-date and dynamic understanding of the subject. Across the individual national case studies, a range of common elements is examined. These include: the differing roles of governments, business and labour as actors in the industrial relations system, and their mutual relationships; the dynamics of collective bargaining, conflict, consultation and worker participation; and the overall performance of industrial relations in economic, social and political terms.

These issues are addressed within the wider context of changes affecting industrial relations in Europe in the 1990s: European unification; the globalization of production and markets, the information revolution; the destabilization of labour markets; the fragmentation of societies in the post-industrial era; and the crisis of welfare states.

In the current period of globalization, Governing Interests presents new research on the impact of internationalization on the organization and representation of business interests through trade and employer associations. By exploring ongoing, gradual, but nevertheless profound changes in the structures and functions of business interest associations, the book develops a precise understanding of the relationship between the national and the international.

Both conceptual and empirical, some papers included in this significant volume adopt a ‘bird''s eye view’ of the topic, whilst others concentrate on individual industries or countries, and several, through examination and analysis, consider the effects on interest representation and the repercussions on effective governance.

Contributed to and edited by leading academics, the diversity of research questions and methods used in this volume provide the reader with an excellent understanding of the subject and, importantly, caution against rash simplifications. Comprehensive and scholarly, this text will be of particular relevance to political scientists and sociologists.