Projects / Programmes
Work, Education and Employment Analyses
January 1, 2015
- December 31, 2019
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 5.03.00 |
Social sciences |
Sociology |
|
| 5.04.00 |
Social sciences |
Administrative and organisational sciences |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| S210 |
Social sciences |
Sociology |
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 5.04 |
Social Sciences |
Sociology |
VoC theory, HRM, employee participation, labour market, labour and employment relations, collective bargaining, social dialogue
Researchers (19)
Organisations (1)
Abstract
In general terms, the research is framed by the wide topic of the transition from ‘real socialism’ to a ‘market economy’, which overlaps processes of the Europeanisation of ‘post-communist’ societies and their transition from Fordism to post-Fordism. The starting conceptual framework is neo-institutional theory as defined in the VoC literature (Hall and Soskice, 2001) and critically revised by different authors (Crouch: 2005; Streeck and Thelen, 2005). The VoC theory basically suggests there are strong and systematic mutual interconnections – ‘institutional complementarities’ – between social protection systems, basic types of skills and prevailing companies’ market strategies within advanced national economies. The VoC theory resumes these complementarities within its core concept – the welfare production regime (WPR) (Estevez-Abe, Iversen and Soskice, 2001; Iversen, 2005).
The rapid political pluralisation of former ‘real socialist’ societies after the late 1980s and early 1990s was followed by waves of mostly non-conflictive, neoliberal changes and the corresponding abrupt work recommodification. When compared to the liberalisations within Western capitalist societies, the results of these processes were significantly more radical, more neoliberal than the results of a similar type of change in the West.
Slovenia was an exception. It took on capitalism in an alternative manner. In this case, (already in the early 1990s) a neo-corporatist system with all the corresponding welfare, i.e. Keynesian, correlates was formed (Bohle & Greskovits, 2007; Feldmann, 2006). The system worked well for the first decade or so. However, in more recent times, approximately since the mid-2000s, it has been exposed to a new abrupt change.
The main goal of the programme is to explain the genesis of as well as the changes that have marked the Slovenian system recently, within the context of the escalating pressures connected to globalisation and Europeanisation processes.
On the basis of the team’s research results up to now, the outlined conceptual framework, and in lie with the main goal of the programme, we intend to proceed with an analysis of the ‘institutional (non)complementarities’, i.e. the transformation of the Slovenian WPR in the forthcoming research period. Within the wide spectrum of the ‘institutional (non)complementarities’ the team will focus, first, on the ‘(non)complementarities at the micro level’ – especially between companies and the their stakeholders and the broader social environment; second, we will try to connect these relationships at the micro level with changes and/or cleavages in the labour market (labour market segmentation and flexibilisation); and, third, with changes within the sphere of intermediary interests’ representation (trade unions and employers’ organisations) and the corresponding formation of public policies.
Significance for science
Our research group uses, empirically verifies and further develops concepts of neo-institutional theory. The interest of the international (research) community to include Slovenia in comparative analyses is relatively strong due to the country’s relatively successful development in the 1990s and the latest 'responses' of the system to the challenges of the (debt) crisis. The key potential outcome of the group’s work involves identifying the limitations and/or development potential of mechanisms of both traditional intra-family and wider redistributive solidarity within a small country in transition. Scientific analysis of the comparative strengths and weaknesses of the existing system, including an analysis of existing attempts to reform it, along with understanding of the implications of the observed changes for the socio-economic system may contribute to the development of new knowledge within sociology in general, and particularly within the sociology of work and related disciplines.
We believe the interdisciplinary composition of the programme group and corresponding richness of the methodological approaches are an additional advantage of the proposed programme, which will add to more comprehensive scientific results. Our analysis will contribute to knowledge about the social and economic position and perspectives of different social groups (in terms of class, age and gender dimensions). Our previous analysis highlighted the importance of understanding the gender specifics of change at all analysed levels; we thus expect that further analysis of that dimension will enrich our scientific results.
Significance for the country
In the current research we have found that Slovenia’s successful economic development was mainly based on increasing the flexibility of labour and employment and increasing the intensity of work. We have found that the system was up until approximately the end of the first half of the last decade capable of successful adaptation and that it was struck by the crisis in 2008. The crisis was reflected in growing social divisions, antagonisms and open conflicts. We expect that our research will delineate the effects of exogenous and endogenous factors in the 'transitional' state of crisis and that this will contribute to identifying developmentally optimal answers to the challenges brought by the crisis.
Based on a comparison of Slovenian developments with trends and changes in the international environment, our analysis will contribute to applied solutions of interest to those making social and employment policies. In this regard, the group will acquire and contribute data by participating in international research networks and projects (CRANET, European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions and others) in the following areas: monitoring and exiting the economic crisis; labour market policies; youth employment and gender gaps in employment; families in crisis; the role of HRM and business strategy; employee participation; changes in collective bargaining and social dialogue.
Members of the group will continue to disseminate scientific and applied results of the work through pedagogical processes at all levels (graduate, postgraduate and doctoral studies), in publications in scientific and professional journals and through other professional work (such as participation in public discussions, involvement in the design and evaluation of legislation and strategies in relevant fields).
Most important scientific results
Annual report
2015,
interim report,
final report
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Annual report
2015,
interim report,
final report
