Susan Milner – författare

In the UK, women's economic empowerment through employment is a success story of the last three decades. And yet women are over-represented in low-paid, insecure jobs, are under-represented in top jobs, and earn less than men on average, with a marked income gap over the lifecourse. When Labour took office in 1997, a new wave of women MPs entered parliament in record numbers, and women gained access to ministerial roles, including a newly-created minister for women. However, policy on women and employment remained an area of conflict. New rights were secured, particularly for mothers, but when Labour left office a sizeable policy agenda remained unfinished. Using documentary evidence and interviews from leading policy actors from the period, Women and Employment in Public Policy takes as its starting point the Women and Work Commission, which was convened in 2004 to examine causes of the gender pay gap. The commission was unable to defuse conflicts over equal pay but it set out an agenda for change at the level of government, private-sector work organizations, and public-sector organizations. Milner examines why the commission could not resolve key conflicts, and why its broad-based recommendations were only partially taken up. She traces the subsequent development of policy, observing well-established preferences for 'light-touch' regulation which can raise awareness but leave entrenched practices unchallenged, and weaken individual women's access to redress. Detailed study of the working of the commission provides lessons on the policy process, particularly for those seeking to influence policy. It also shows that within the wider policy space, opportunities for action to effect change are possible - based on appeals to instrumental logic or political exchange - but are constrained by party leadership.

In the UK, women''s economic empowerment through employment is a success story of the last three decades. And yet women are over-represented in low-paid, insecure jobs, are under-represented in top jobs, and earn less than men on average, with a marked income gap over the lifecourse. When Labour took office in 1997, a new wave of women MPs entered parliament in record numbers, and women gained access to ministerial roles, including a newly-created minister for women. However, policy on women and employment remained an area of conflict. New rights were secured, particularly for mothers, but when Labour left office a sizeable policy agenda remained unfinished. Using documentary evidence and interviews from leading policy actors from the period, Women and Employment in Public Policy takes as its starting point the Women and Work Commission, which was convened in 2004 to examine causes of the gender pay gap. The commission was unable to defuse conflicts over equal pay but it set out an agenda for change at the level of government, private-sector work organizations, and public-sector organizations. Milner examines why the commission could not resolve key conflicts, and why its broad-based recommendations were only partially taken up. She traces the subsequent development of policy, observing well-established preferences for ''light-touch'' regulation which can raise awareness but leave entrenched practices unchallenged, and weaken individual women''s access to redress. Detailed study of the working of the commission provides lessons on the policy process, particularly for those seeking to influence policy. It also shows that within the wider policy space, opportunities for action to effect change are possible - based on appeals to instrumental logic or political exchange - but are constrained by party leadership.

In the UK, women's economic empowerment through employment is a success story of the last three decades. And yet women are over-represented in low-paid, insecure jobs, are under-represented in top jobs, and earn less than men on average, with a marked income gap over the lifecourse. When Labour took office in 1997, a new wave of women MPs entered parliament in record numbers, and women gained access to ministerial roles, including a newly-created minister for women. However, policy on women and employment remained an area of conflict. New rights were secured, particularly for mothers, but when Labour left office a sizeable policy agenda remained unfinished. Using documentary evidence and interviews from leading policy actors from the period, Women and Employment in Public Policy takes as its starting point the Women and Work Commission, which was convened in 2004 to examine causes of the gender pay gap. The commission was unable to defuse conflicts over equal pay but it set out an agenda for change at the level of government, private-sector work organizations, and public-sector organizations. Milner examines why the commission could not resolve key conflicts, and why its broad-based recommendations were only partially taken up. She traces the subsequent development of policy, observing well-established preferences for 'light-touch' regulation which can raise awareness but leave entrenched practices unchallenged, and weaken individual women's access to redress. Detailed study of the working of the commission provides lessons on the policy process, particularly for those seeking to influence policy. It also shows that within the wider policy space, opportunities for action to effect change are possible - based on appeals to instrumental logic or political exchange - but are constrained by party leadership.

Dilemmas of Internationalism focuses on the French labour movement as it deals with the French syndicalists' attitude towards internationalism and anti-militarism in the pre-1914 period.

Comparative Employment Relations explores the interconnectedness of contemporary European economies by examining employment relations in three key European countries: France, Germany and Britain. It offers an in-depth comparative analysis of the issues that stand at the heart of employment relations: pay and working conditions and how these are determined, power relations between capital and labour, how employment should be regulated, and what role the state plays.Key benefits:- Written in an engaging and accessible style- Offers a unique systematic comparison between the three countries- Handles complex theoretical concepts in a straightforward and innovative way.This book fills the gap between single country studies of employment relations and more broad-brush multi-country approaches, making it ideal for both undergraduate and postgraduate students studying employment and industrial relations.