Publisher's Synopsis
Employment is a "big issue" in the European Union. Against a background of consistently high unemployment rates, governments and social partners have undertaken numerous efforts to create jobs and get the unemployed onto the labour market. Since the early 1990s collective bargaining in many European countries has adopted a partnership approach to improve employment and competitiveness.;This report describes initiatives knowns as "Pacts for Employment and Competitiveness" (PECs) which are a combination of three main elements: structure of employment through a mix of market regulation; collective bargaining at the various levels; and public policy intervention on tax, social security contributions, training, education and innovation.
