bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pension Rights and Entitlement Conversion (‘Invaren’): Lessons from a Dutch Perspective with Regard to the Implications of the EU Charter
Authors: Van Meerten Hans , Borsjé Pascal
Published: March 2017

This article discusses issues regarding ‘conversion’, in particular the transformation of second pillar pension rights and entitlements. It considers the different European law regimes that are an influence on conversion, namely EU law and the law regarding the European Convention on Human Rights (hereinafter ECHR). The central question here is: would the outcome be different when conversion is tested under EU law and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU (hereinafter ‘the Charter’) rather than under ECHR law? The answer seems to be ‘yes’.

This article demonstrates that EU law and the Charter may offer the pensioner different and possibly more extensive protection, inter alia, against governmental measures than the ECHR. EU law may also have a direct horizontal effect, i.e. the article might be invoked directly against a pension fund. In addition, the test of fundamental rights in the Charter and the ECHR may have entirely different outcomes. More generally, an alleged breach of Article 17 of the Charter must also be reviewed in the light of the EU's economic and social objectives. These objectives are not, as such, part of the ECHR. It is difficult to predict whether a claim, based on Article 17 by an individual against a Member State and/or a relevant pension fund would be successful. Infringement of pension entitlements has not yet been tested against the Charter.
Demagnetisation of Social Security and Health Care for Migrants to the UK
Authors: Harris Neville
Published: March 2017

Over the past two decades, starting with the social security ‘habitual residence’ test, UK governments have maintained a consistent policy of restricting the access of migrants to welfare benefits and public health care. It has represented a response to increased levels of inward migration flow, including anticipated increases arising from enlarged European Union (EU) membership, and the supposed ‘magnetic pull’ of UK welfare and health care systems to migrants. Adjustment of the benefit rules affecting EU migrants, which has at times come very close to crossing lines of legality under EU law, has lately featured prominently in the UK's proposals to the EU over the terms of its Union membership. The article focuses on the policy changes and legal developments, including case law, across the areas of social assistance benefits, state retirement pensions and health care, and assesses their impact, seeking to analyse the changing position of residence as an issue in entitlement and its implications.
The Case of the Guarantee Pension Reform: Change of Perceived Income Adequacy among Low-Income Pensioners in Finland
Authors: Airio Ilpo , Nurminen Minna
Published: March 2017

This article investigates the effects of the Finnish 2011 guarantee pension reform on perceived income adequacy among the financially most disadvantaged pensioners in Finland. These particular pensioners receive the Finnish minimum pension, which is the full amount of the national pension. The guarantee pension was designed to be an individual supplementary allowance that would not affect the principles of the earnings-related pension and the national pension schemes. The main research question is as follows: How has the perceived income adequacy of pensioners entitled to the full national pension changed as a result of the guarantee pension reform? The analysis is based on pre- and post-reform (2010 and 2013) postal surveys, which were targeted at pensioners aged 65–85 years who were already entitled to the full national pension and who became entitled to the guarantee pension in 2011. The analysis illustrates that low-income pensioners were more financially satisfied after the reform than before it. Thus, it can be argued that the guarantee pension reform has had a positive effect on the perceived income adequacy of low-income pensioners. However, health, demographic and socio-economic factors also play a role when perceived income adequacy is examined among the low-income elderly population.
Re Shaping the Paradigm of Social Solidarity in the EU: On the UK's Welfare Reforms and Pre- and Post-EU Referendum Developments
Authors: Babayev Rufat
Published: March 2017

The sense of social solidarity formed at Union level is manifested, broadly speaking, in the very interchangeability of national solidaristic communities in the Union that allows Union citizens to be affiliated with the one of their residence. Initially widely defined in light of Union citizenship, the prospect of such interchangeability has been narrowed down in a trilogy of the Court's recent rulings. With the primacy afforded to the black-letter provisions of Union secondary law without the need for further proportionality assessment, the interchangeability of national solidaristic communities seems to be confined to the extent of an economic contribution in a host Member State. The actual parameters of this factor as a criterion setting the threshold of membership in a national solidaristic community are, in turn, being defined by Member States themselves, often resorting to the narrow and exclusionary interpretation of Union citizens' rights. The welfare reforms introduced in the UK in the period leading up to the EU referendum vote, for instance, have re-shaped the extent of Union workers' and job-seekers' rights by re-balancing them around the factor of economic contribution and specifically targeting those who are not deemed to actually contribute in the UK. As a result, fixing the threshold of membership in a national solidaristic community in this manner, both at Union and national levels, has created much uncertainty about the fate of Union citizenship and Union citizens' rights derived from the Treaty.
Comprehensive Sickness Insurance as a Condition for EU Citizens' Residence in other Member States: A Need for Reform?
Authors: Sokol Tomislav
Published: March 2017

Free movement of persons is one of the fundamental freedoms of European integration. It is protected by EU primary law, especially by the TFEU and its provisions on citizen's rights and free movement of workers within the Union. The described freedom is not absolute, however. One of the crucial limitations consists of the economically nonactive EU citizens and their family members having to obtain comprehensive sickness insurance cover in the host Member States in order to enjoy the right of residence for more than three months in those states.

The aim of the paper is to analyse the legal framework of the UK, Ireland, Slovenia and Croatia and their implementation of the EU Residence Directive's comprehensive sickness insurance condition for the right of residence in EU Member States and determine whether certain changes to the Residence Directive are needed in order to obtain a clearer regulation of EU citizens' rights in cross-border situations. The analysis has shown that the national autonomy may result in various interpretations, depending on the type of the social security health system the country in question employs. Different interpretations have highlighted the need for a clearer EU-level regulation, to increase clarity and legal certainty for migrants.
The pendulum strikes back? An analysis of the evolution of Hungarian higher education governance and organisational structures since the 1980s
Authors: Kováts Gergely , Heidrich Balázs , Chandler Nick
Published: March 2017

Higher education in Central Europe has been scrutinised from many different perspectives during the last 30 years. In our analysis, we focus solely on Hungary and specifically on two key areas: governance and organisational structure. Using an analytical model proposed by Leisyte (2014), we analyse how the governance and organisational structure of institutions have changed between 1985 and 2015, and consider what the driving forces might be behind these changes. Through our analysis, we found that the pendulum effect observed in organisational culture and leadership in Eastern Europe (Bakacsi, 2014) in periods of transition could also be identified in the governance models in Hungary. Despite evidence of a convergence of higher education policies in Bulgaria, Romania, Poland and the Czech Republic (Dobbins, 2011) towards the market-type model of higher education governance, we found that in Hungary the model is much more state-controlled and there is already an apparent move away from foreign-inspired ideals and models. It is suggested that Hungary is ahead of the apparent trend in other countries where they have yet to experience a swing in the opposite direction.
Qualitative Analysis of Infant Safe Sleep Public Campaign Messaging
Authors: Peacock Nadine R. , Altfeld Susan , Rosenthal Allison L. , Garland Caitlin E. , Massino Jill M. , Smith Sherri L. , Rowe Hillary L. , Wagener Sarah E.
Published: March 2017

The 1994 Back to Sleep public education campaign resulted in dramatic reductions in sleep-related infant deaths, but comparable progress in recent years has been elusive. We conducted qualitative analyses of recent safe sleep campaigns from 13 U.S. cities. Goals were to (a) determine whether the campaigns reflect the full range of American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) 2011 safe sleep recommendations, (b) describe tone and framing of the messages (e.g., use of fear appeals), (c) describe targeting/tailoring of messages to priority populations, and (d) ascertain whether the campaigns have been evaluated for reach and/or effectiveness. Methods included computer-assisted analyses of campaign materials and key informant interviews. All campaigns included “ABC” (Alone, Back, Crib) messaging; many ignored other AAP recommendations such as breastfeeding, room-sharing, immunizations, and avoiding smoke exposure. Campaigns frequently targeted priority populations such as African Americans. Fear appeals were used in three quarters of the campaigns, and 60% of the fear-based campaigns used guilt/blame messaging. We did not find published evaluation data for any of the campaigns. More attention is needed in public education campaigns to the full range of AAP recommendations, and evaluations are needed to determine the impact of these interventions on knowledge, behavior, and health outcomes.
Paul of Aegina (ca 625-690 ad), Reconstructing Male Gynecomastia
Authors: Tsoucalas Gregory , Sgantzos Markos
Published: March 2017

Paul of Aegina thrived with his innovative operations, practically creating a kind of a new surgical school. He had deeply believed in human’s body perfection introducing a series of cosmetic operations. Among them stood the male’s breasts reconstruction in the case of pseudo-gynecomastia. His intervention was replicated by both the western Europeans and the Arabs.
How to Create a Successful Lifestyle Medicine Practice
Authors: Braman Marc , Edison Mara
Published: March 2017

A lifestyle medicine (LM) practice aims to treat the whole person, with a focus on addressing the root lifestyle causes of disease. Creating a practice in LM comes with an array of challenges. Utilizing different payment systems and practice models, such as cash, traditional insurance, Direct Primary Care model, or concierge systems, allows for the incorporation of more LM services and ensures sustainability in the practice. One must develop a sound business model and aim to keep costs low. Optimizing coding, taking advantage of additional LM services, and expanding service formats to group visits or telemedicine are all creative ways to incorporate and develop LM practices. Anticipation of new challenges and flexibility in practice models and payment systems allows one to be successful in starting or transitioning to an LM practice.
A Case Study of a Methodological Approach to Cocreating Perinatal Health Knowledge Between Western and Indigenous Communities
Authors: Kandasamy Sujane , Vanstone Meredith , Oremus Mark , Hill Trista , Wahi Gita , Wilson Julie , Davis A. Darlene , Jacobs Ruby , Anglin Rebecca , Anand Sonia S.
Published: March 2017

This article describes the methods taken to create an understanding of the perinatal health beliefs of elder Indigenous women of the Six Nations of the Grand River in Ontario, Canada. Our study paired constructivist grounded theory data collection and analysis methods with an Indigenous epistemological framework. We aimed to create knowledge that was specific to an Indigenous context, which was useful and resonant with both Indigenous and Western readers. The multidisciplinary research team included Indigenous and non-Indigenous members and worked with a common appreciation for multiple knowledge sources. We offer an account of our process and methodological principles to serve as an illustrative case study of bringing together diverse approaches when working with Indigenous communities.
Compassionate communication in acute healthcare: establishing the face and content validity of a questionnaire
Authors: McElroy Claire , Esterhuizen Philip
Published: March 2017

The National Health Service is committed to measuring the quality of nursing care through adopting a number of indicators which are not nationally standardised. Compassionate communication is one indicator, but it is unclear how this is assessed or demonstrated in practice. This is primarily a methodological paper which aims to establish the face and content validity of a questionnaire to measure nurses’ non-verbal methods of compassionate communication with patients in acute healthcare. An existing questionnaire was amended to meet the study’s requirements. A ‘lay expert sample’ was used to rate the face validity and a ‘research expert sample’ to rate the content validity of the instrument. Modification of one response and adding instructions on how to complete the questionnaire meant that Version 2 potentially has high face validity. The questionnaire demonstrated excellent content validity (Scale-Content Validity Index = 0.85). Recommendations include pilot testing to further investigate the construct of non-verbal compassionate communication in an acute healthcare context. This research can be used to inform the measurement of compassionate communication and promote standardisation nationally.
Productive Ward: Releasing Time to Care, or capacity for compassion: results from a longitudinal study of the quality improvement initiative
Authors: White Mark , Butterworth Tony , Wells John SG
Published: March 2017

Recent concerns about the poor quality of healthcare and diminishing compassion within patient care have prompted many healthcare organisations to adopt ‘compassion’ and ‘care’ into their value and mission statements. Productive Ward: Releasing Time to Care (PW) is a quality improvement (QI) programme designed to meet the value and mission intentions around quality and compassion. The purpose of this study is to measure the impact that PW has on direct patient care (DPC) times and the capacity of ward-based teams to provide compassionate care. This study used an exploratory longitudinal, cohort design (with an experimental test outcome, using a matched control group) to examine DPC times and ‘engagement’ (the antithesis of ‘burnout’ and ‘compassion fatigue’) amongst ward-based teams involved the PW QI initiative in Ireland. Ward-based teams involved in PW reported higher baseline levels of ‘engagement’ (vigour, absorption and dedication) compared to a control group which remained unchanged after a 12-month period. DPC times improved in just over half the study sites, but no significant changes were observed. No statistically significant relationships between ‘engagement’ and DPC were established. This study demonstrates that PW does not necessarily ‘release time to care’ in every instance and that many factors influence this. Compared to a control group it does, however, show encouraging signs that it may engage ward-based teams, thus creating some of the conditions and capacity in which compassion and quality can flourish.
Valuing feedback: an evaluation of a National Health Service programme to support compassionate care practice through hearing and responding to feedback
Authors: Smith S , Gentleman M , Conway Linda , Sloan Sue
Published: March 2017

There is an emergent recognition in healthcare that people need to be at the heart of services, and experiences of care matter; these should therefore be recognised and enhance practice.

The aims of this research were to evaluate an NHS development programme, Valuing Feedback. The programme focused on supporting compassionate care practice by enabling NHS staff to listen, learn and respond to feedback enabling the development of practice.

Findings identified that participants had a heightened awareness of the power and importance of feedback to support practice change. An enhanced understanding of using the feedback tools, Emotional Touchpoints and Envision Cards, was evident and working with these tools during the programme supported local implementation. Participants identified learning and changes to their practice resulting from feedback, specifically development in their own practice and service change. Participants identified that listening to positive and negative feedback based on emotional experience involved being brave. There was a requirement to be open and listen to criticism. Participants highlighted that feedback activities require support, as they need time to plan, undertake, reflect upon and initiate development.

Conclusions from this research highlight the value of feedback focused on emotions and understanding experiences of patients, relatives and staff. Such feedback impacted on practice. Opportunities where NHS staff shared and learned from feedback were highly valued. It is necessary to consider how the activity of feedback can be effectively supported, enabling staff, their teams and organisations to prioritise feedback activity and develop compassionate care practice for patients, relatives and staff.
Network-coded internet-friendly transport protocol
Authors: Ridgewell Justin , ElAarag Hala
Published: March 2017

This paper presents the design of network-coded TCP (NCTCP). NCTCP is a reliable TCP-like transport protocol that uses network coding to dramatically improve the overall performance in networks with lossy links. By sending datagrams that represent a linear combination of packets, we are able to receive data in an orderless fashion and still push data in byte-correct order to the receiver.s application layer. To eliminate roundoff errors, we generate consecutive-ones linear combinations of packets that form totally unimodular matrices. We then decode these datagrams using an efficient technique. In addition, NCTCP has an additive increase multiplicative decrease (AIMD) congestion control mechanism that uses round-trip times to increase the performance on wireless networks without hurting the performance on wired networks. Unlike TCP.s AIMD mechanism, NCTCP does not use a congestion window. Furthermore, NCTCP can be implemented in user space and hence does not need any changes to the kernel. We test our protocol using ns-2 simulator using several performance measurements, namely, throughput, goodput, efficiency and receiver efficiency. Our simulations show that NCTCP performs better than standard TCP implementations and previously proposed network coding protocols; TCP/NC and CTCP. We also demonstrate that NCTCP is TCP-friendly and maintains the fairness property essential for the health of the internet.
‘To test or not to test’, the arguments for and against thrombophilia testing in obstetrics
Authors: Ormesher Laura , Simcox Louise E , Tower Clare , Greer Ian A
Published: March 2017

Clinicians increasingly investigate women for thrombophilias due to their associations with venous thromboembolism and placenta-mediated pregnancy complication. These associations, however, are modest and based largely on retrospective data from studies with heterogeneous classifications and populations, leading to discordance between evidence and guidelines. Current evidence suggests a contributory rather than causative role for thrombophilia in placenta-mediated pregnancy complication and venous thromboembolism. With little evidence of benefit from antithrombotic therapy in placenta-mediated pregnancy complication, thrombophilia screening remains controversial. Given the low absolute risk of placenta-mediated pregnancy complication and gestational venous thromboembolism with heritable thrombophilia, universal screening is inappropriate. Selective screening for antiphospholipid syndrome is supported by robust evidence of benefit. Conversely, selective screening for heritable thrombophilia has not been shown to effectively manage placenta-mediated pregnancy complication. Therefore, at present heritable thrombophilia screening is not warranted for placenta-mediated pregnancy complication. Until we have better evidence from better stratified patient groups, caution should remain if we wish to practice evidence-based medicine.
Community pharmacists’ perspectives of online health-related information: A qualitative insight from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Authors: See Wan Ong , Hassali Mohamed Azmi , Saleem Fahad
Published: March 2017

Background:

The Internet is a resource used by health professionals as well as the public to access health information. Within this context, little is reported on community pharmacists’ (CPs’) perceptions of online health-related information. The objective of this study was to explore the attitudes of Malaysian CPs towards online health-related information.

Methods:

A qualitative research method was adopted with face-to-face interviews, using a semi-structured interview guide. Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used to recruit a convenient sample of CPs who were practising in the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. All interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. The data were analysed by the research team using a thematic content analysis framework.

Results:

Eleven CPs participated in the study. Participants reported that online health-related information was accessible, useful, fast, and in some respects, the Internet is a unique source of information. It was reported that there was a need to establish websites for trusted information. CPs also reported that training was needed in Internet searching and website evaluation skills. Most information accessed by CPs related to drugs and diseases and to knowledge-based information. Barriers to efficacy of Internet usage were related to the reliability and volume of information available on the Internet.

Conclusion:

Frequent use of online health-related information among CPs was reported. Many CPs supported the use of the Internet for health-related information but certain reservations were also reported. An analysis of the reasons for information seeking and barriers suggests that a wider range of influences on health information seeking should be investigated.
Conducting an Innovations/Issues Change Tracking and Forecasting Term Project in an Undergraduate Futures Studies Course
Authors: Morgan Dennis Ray
Published: March 2017

For the past three years, while teaching an Introduction to Global Futures Studies course at the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (Seoul, Korea), the “Innovations/Issues Change Tracking and Forecasting Term Project” has been an essential component of the course. This group project (5-7 in a group) includes individual reports and presentations divided into three sections: (1) past changes, (2) present changes, and (3) forecasts of three to five scenarios. Progressive stages of the project are based on research assignments, which are foresight exercises that build upon each other: (1) online environmental scanning—where students scan online for STEEP (Social–Technological–Economical-Environmental–Political) innovations and issues to consider for the project; (2) change tracking of the selected innovation/issue—where changes are tracked from origin to present within a 5-25 year time range; (3) present time change tracking—where students research and analyze recent impacts and changes to the chosen innovation/issue; (4) in-class timeline construction—where all results are fused into one timeline; and (5) in-class futures wheel scenario constructions. Based on the results, 3-5 scenarios are constructed (from a future time frame of either 5, 10, 15, 20 or 25 years), and should include: (1) a baseline scenario—a trend-based continuation of past changes (from STEEP categories); (2) an alternative futures scenario—based on weak signals within present changes; and (3) a “wild card” scenario—a speculative attempt to foresee the unforeseeable. This article will report on the stages of development, student experiences, and results of the term project.
The Internal Market and the Future of Labour Law in Europe: Insights from the Nordic Countries
Authors: Nyström Birgitta
Published: March 2017

EU law has influenced the Nordic labour law systems considerably. Although, an overall feeling that this has not caused many problems, some matters have been considered problematic. The problems concerns mainly two areas: Collective agreements and the labour market parties' freedom, and the question about social dumping.

The author argues that the growing amount of EU legislation has reduced the labour market parties' freedom, and that the Laval case and its followers have challenged the Nordic labour law systems and traditions. Further, the author questions if the ongoing harmonization within the European Union not is downwards when it comes to the labour market and social standards.
The Future of Labour Law: Insights from an East European Country
Authors: Kollonay Csilla
Published: March 2017

The accession of the eight former socialist countries to the European Union in 2004 (and further two in 2007) was preceded and also followed by intensive debates on the supposed effect of this accession to the labour standards in the fifteen “Old Member” states. This contribution, however, takes a somewhat different viewpoint, in light of the debate on the future of labour law in Europe. It not only takes the perspective of a so-called transitional country in the course of and after the accession to the European Union. It also encourages the search for viable solutions drawn from the pre-transition experience of Eastern European countries, without neglecting the opposite substance of centralized planned economies and market economies.
The Right to Form and to Join Trade Unions for the Protection of His Interests under Article 11 ECHR
Authors: Dorssemont Filip
Published: March 2017

The case law of the (ILO) Freedom of Association Committee as well as that of the (Council of Europe) European Committee on Social Rights regarding the right to organize (freedom of trade union association) has been summarized in so-called Digests. No official summary exists with regard to the case law of the European Court on Human Rights in the field of the right to form and join trade unions for the protection of one's interest (Article 11 European Convention on Human Rights). The present contribution seeks to digest this case law (1975–2009) in a critical manner. The historical development of the case law will be analyzed according to the conceptual bifurcation between the individual versus the collective dimension of the freedom of association. The analysis will be confronted with the case law enshrined in some of the other Digests. The contribution seeks to reconstruct how the Court gradually strengthened its scrutiny of the domestic law of the Contracting Parties and assesses how the protection of the individual dimension relates to that of the collective dimension of the right to organize.
Keeping a Secret: The Increasing Equivalence of Civil Service Concepts in the European Union
Authors: De Becker Alexander
Published: March 2017

This article analyses some legal aspects of the complex world of public service law. These aspects concern the cutting edge of labour law, EU law, administrative and constitutional law. The current legal status of officials is no longer regulated (or fully regulated) by the sovereignty of the EU- Member States. The national sovereignty of the Member States to retain a specific status for their officials is put under pressure by the EU-regulations and the case law of the ECJ and even also by case law of the ECHR.
Trade Union Liability for ‘EU-Unlawful’ Collective Action
Authors: Malmberg Jonas
Published: March 2017

The Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) has made it clear that collective action taken by trade unions under certain circumstances might violate the freedom of services and the right of establishment under the Treaty (Articles 49 and 56 TFEU). However, the Court has not addressed the issue of which remedies are to be available against a trade union arranging such an ‘EU-unlawful’ collective action. This question was dealt with by the Swedish Labour Court (Arbetsdomstolen) in its final judgment in December 2009. The article discusses this judgment and presents an alternative understanding of the EU law requirements concerning remedies for EU-unlawful collective actions.
The Crisis and National Labour Law Reforms
Authors: Clauwaert Stefan , Schömann Isabelle
Published: March 2017

This paper1 maps the labour law reforms in various European countries either triggered by the crisis or introduced using the crisis – falsely – as an excuse. Such reforms generally render existing labour law provisions more flexible and loosen minimum standards, shifting the emphasis to soft law (deregulation).

In some countries it consists only of piecemeal although significant deregulatory measures, while in others it involves far-reaching overhauls of the whole labour code. Furthermore, in several countries fundamental changes are being made to industrial relations structures and processes which might jeopardise social dialogue and collective bargaining there.

The authors critically address this large-scale deregulation of labour law currently taking place, in particular the lack of democratic foundations underlying the reforms and their negative impact on fundamental social rights and workers' protection.
The Road to Flexibility? Lessons from the New Hungarian Labour Code
Authors: Gyulavári Tamás , Hős Nikolett
Published: March 2017

As a result of a general revision, a new Labour Code entered into force on 1 July 2012 in Hungary. One of the determining objectives of the recent labour law reform was ‘flexibilisation’, and ensuring that regulation by labour law should be kept to a minimum. The new rules increased the contractual freedom of parties, and particularly the role of collective agreements in the regulation of employment relationships. While maintaining the basic structure of Hungarian labour law, the new Labour Code introduced conceptual changes in several key areas, such as the termination of employment relationships, liability for damages and collective rights. These changes were justified by the government on the grounds that the current labour law regulation was too rigid and that did not reflect the private law foundations of this field of law sufficiently. The article puts this statement under critical review and gives an overview of the most important elements of the labour law reform. In particular, after a short introduction we will examine what changes the new Labour Code introduced in the hierarchy of legal sources, and what attempts were made to extend the scope of the Labour Code to other forms of employment. Further, we will analyse to what extent the changes introduced by the new Labour Code modified the balance between the interests of employees and employers. Finally, we will also give an overview of the relationship between the new Labour Code and EU labour law.
Freedom of Movement for Employers and Employees in the European Union
Authors: Neal Alan C.
Published: March 2017

This article deals with the free movement of workers in the European Union. It seeks an understanding of this Treaty freedom in light of a contemporary Union picture and a changing labour market. The article considers the content of the free movement provisions themselves and the extent to which the mobility rights contained in them have been exercised to date. In doing so, it takes a dynamic perspective, taking into account the early understandings of free movement law and the way in which this has evolved over time against the background of economic and social progress. The analysis does not limit itself narrowly to ‘free movement of workers’, but also touches upon the impact of related and other ‘fundamental freedoms’ areas. It is pointed out that free movement for workers remains a highly controversial element in European social policy.
Collective Agreements within the Limits of Europe
Authors: Schubert Claudia
Published: March 2017

Collective bargaining, meaning the self-determined and independent negotiation of collective agreements, is subject to multifarious limitations imposed by EU law. In the light of recent developments, this contribution asks which role the sovereignty of collective bargaining plays in the framework of the European economic order and how it relates to EU laws. The decisive questions are: To which extent is collective bargaining protected in Europe and to which extent may the EU limit collective bargaining? The issue concerns nothing less than the scope and limits of the power of collective bargaining.
Labour and Social Welfare Measures to Combat the Economic Crisis in Germany
Authors: Brecht-Heitzmann Holger , Röns Benjamin
Published: March 2017

Although Germany, and especially the labour market, were particularly affected by the global financial and economic crisis, it already started to recover, contrary to most other countries, in 2009. Meanwhile, it now has a lower unemployment rate than before the crisis. To explain this initially surprising outcome, the authors will first of all provide an overview of the course of the crisis in Germany and the subsequent development. Following this, there will be a detailed analysis of the most important governmental and entrepreneurial measures that are intended to cushion against the economic crisis, especially the utilisation of short-time work, the expansion of job placement and the flexibilisation of working times. Finally, there will be an examination of the question of which of these measures are responsible for the positive development and which optimisations can be proposed for the future.
Transnational Aspects of Undeclared Work and the Role of EU Legislation
Authors: McKay Sonia
Published: March 2017

This article deals with the transnational aspects of undeclared work and the role of EU legislation, focusing on four key areas: the informal posting of workers between Member States, including false posting; the presence of third-country nationals on the territory without work permission and thus working in the informal sectors of the economy; cross-border informal work; as well as on social security and welfare benefits in the context of transnational mobility. The article acknowledges a global trend supported by policy at EU and national state levels, that favours temporary, circular and selective migration,1 and that consequently also creates the conditions in which undeclared work grows, either because individuals stay on after the period of temporary migration and work in the informal sector, or because the very temporary nature of their stay, as the article argues, is not conducive to the declaration of work and income, in conditions where workers do not experience returns on their investment in taxes. The article begins by providing a context for undeclared work in its transnational aspects. It then looks at some of the key legal instruments. Finally it envisions contractual arrangements designed to circumvent national regulations or taxation requirements, such as false self-employment. The focus is on migration as a transnational phenomenon in relation to undeclared work. This requires a consideration as to whether, in a context of tightening migration controls throughout the European Union, those who migrate are not only are more likely to be pushed into undeclared work but whether their consequent precariousness puts pressure on the working conditions of those in declared work.
Undeclared Work: Possible Sanctions on Closer Examination
Authors: Waas Bernd
Published: March 2017

According to the definition of the European Commission, undeclared work is ‘any paid activity that is lawful as regards its nature but not declared to public authorities, taking into account differences in the regulatory system of Member States.’1 The key question has always been how we can effectively tackle undeclared work. There are now numerous configurations of sanctions and incentives in existence,2 as can be seen in the legal systems of the Member States of the European Union.3 Yet regardless of how meritorious these are, what is striking here is that the concept of sanctioning is, for the most part, relatively narrow. Evidently, thoughts mainly run along the lines of penalties and fines, which the state imposes on the undeclared worker and/or his employer. This falls short of what is needed in two ways. First, this approach falls short because – in terms of penal law and law governing administrative offences – we should not be constrained to consider possible penalties or fines, but should also ask whether other tools might not be found in these areas which could possibly be utilised in the context of tackling undeclared work. Second, it falls short particularly because the role that other areas of law, particularly civil law, could play in this context is largely ignored. This is astonishing when we consider the significance of sanctions under civil law in the context of violations of competition law, for example. In this field, Council Regulation (EC) No. 1/2003 of 16 December 20024 led to a real paradigm change from administrative enforcement of EU competition law to ‘private enforcement’, which is sometimes described as a ‘change from an administratively led ex-ante control to an ex-post control driven by private initiative’.5 However, above all it is astonishing because consequences of undeclared work under civil law are suited to quite considerably influencing the associated risks for those involved. This paper will give both a brief overview of further legal consequences of criminal and administrative offences outside of penalties and fines (II) and a look at civil law (I). The latter is actually the focus, and consequently it must be addressed straight away in this paper. Solely for reasons of scope, I will not seek to provide a comprehensive investigation comparing different legal systems. Rather, all of the points made will primarily be based solely on German law, which should, however, be sufficient to illustrate the relevant problems.
Which Securities for Workers in Times of Crisis? An Introduction
Authors: Laulom Sylvaine , Teissier Christophe
Published: March 2017

The articles of this special issue ‘Which securities for workers in times of crisis?’ deal with the reactions of national labour law in response to the ongoing economic crisis. Four conventional wisdoms are challenged. A first conventional wisdom is to present the legal answers to the ongoing economic crisis as contingent by nature – in other words, existing only in response to, and during times of, crisis. The second wisdom concerns the functioning of labour markets and their division into two groups: insiders and outsiders. The third wisdom is that fundamental social rights could play an active role in defining new securities for workers. Finally, the fourth conventional wisdom concerns the myth of flexicurity. We ask whether it is now time to abandon the flexicurity concept since its security side has been left dormant.
Critical Analysis of ECJ Case Law on Fixed-Term Contracts in the Public Sector
Authors: Mazuyer Emmanuelle
Published: March 2017

This paper analyses the impact of atypical employment contracts on the public sector in European countries through the Court of Justice's interpretation of some national provisions implementing the Framework Agreement on fixed-term work. It shows that in the decisions analysed, the Court has shown a real desire to protect workers on fixed-term contracts, in some areas relating to a broad scope of material application of the Framework Agreement and the extent of the principle of equality of treatment. However, this case law increases instability in the status of civil servants, while ignoring their specific characteristics and validating a reduction in the level of national legal protection of public sector employment. This appears to go hand-in-hand with a deeper trend towards segmentation of the labour market, privatisation of the public sector and contractualisation of workers in the public sector.
Young Employees: Securities, Risk Distribution and Fundamental Social Rights
Authors: Votinius Jenny Julén
Published: March 2017

Introducing a basis for further development of a risk-security model, this article discusses how such a model could be applied in an analysis of the area of youth employment. The article explores certain aspects of recent youth employment policies as expressed in union policies and in the national labour law of a number of EU Member States. Special attention is paid to national labour law reforms that have been adapted in the wake of the crisis and in which youth employment is promoted through a levelling-down of the employment rights, particularly for young people. The article explores typical components of this specific kind of labour law reform, in the light of youth employment policies at the EU level, with examples from a number of Member States, and in relation to the standards set by social fundamental rights.
Which Securities for Workers in Times of Crisis? Challenges and Perspectives
Authors: Leclerc Olivier
Published: March 2017

This article concludes the special issue Which securities for workers in times of crisis? It focuses on three aspects. First, it stresses the need for a reappraisal of the conceptual apparatus of labour law. Second, it discusses some of the tensions in the relationship between labour law reform and economic crisis. It suggests that the notion of crisis is not helpful in understanding the current changes to labour law systems. Finally, the article highlights some perspectives offered by the special issue, with special attention to the notion of risk as an alternative paradigm.
The European Internal Market and the Competition between Workers
Authors: Verschueren Herwig
Published: March 2017

This article examines to what extent European internal market law has led to regulatory competition between Member States in the field of labour law. Such competition is not limited to the relations between the Member States. Regulatory competition can also occur within the territory of the same Member State, since the internal market also influences the definition of the territorial scope of national labour law, in particular when a cross-border aspect is involved. This article looks into these questions from a legal point of view. First it summarises the principle underlying these issues, more specifically the fact that labour law continues, in the first place, to be a matter of national competence. It subsequently analyses the impact of, and the interplay between, the freedom of movement for workers, the freedom to provide services and the rules of private international law. It pays special attention to the meaning of Posting of Workers Directive 96/71 and analyses how this Directive and the case law of the Court of Justice relating to it are situated at the cross-roads of legal rules and economic interests.
Occupational Welfare Arrangements Negotiated at the Transnational Level
Authors: Senatori Iacopo
Published: March 2017

This paper discusses the role of European social dialogue in the establishment of occupational welfare arrangements at the transnational level. In the first part, dedicated to the definition of the key concepts, it is argued that occupational welfare should be framed into the flexicurity context; hence, the analysis of occupational welfare schemes permits the shedding of light on certain characteristics of the flexicurity approach, especially as long as the conditions for the pursuit of ‘high road’ policies is concerned. In the second part, building on the findings of an international research project coordinated by the author, a sample of transnational texts that contain provisions dedicated to occupational welfare is presented, with the aim of explaining whether and under what conditions European social dialogue can be mobilised as a regulatory resource for the implementation of occupational welfare policies linking, from a ‘high road’ perspective, flexibility and competitiveness-oriented strategies with the protection of workers' needs.
Travelling Time is Working Time According to the CJEU… at Least for Mobile Workers
Authors: De Groof Sarah
Published: March 2017

The definition of working time has been the subject of case law of the European Court of Justice (CJEU) many times before. A recent judgement of the CJEU on the time spent travelling by mobile workers adds a new piece to the puzzle. After describing the case, this commentary will make an attempt to clarify its impact on the concept of working time by looking at other situations where employees have to travel from their homes to customers. Afterwards, arguments are given as to why this judgement could perhaps be seen as a new CJEU puzzle altogether regarding the definition of working time by comparing this case to the well-established case law of the CJEU on doctors on call.
Enemy at the (Flood) Gates
Authors: Rocca Marco
Published: March 2017

During the Great Recession we are witnessing a growing tension between the actions of the EU institutions and the rights and values embodied by the ILO Conventions and the European Social Charter. The present contribution explores two case studies embodying this tension. The first section provides a brief historical account of the relationship between the EU and these legal orders. Sections two and three deal with two recent conflicts, in the areas of austerity policies and the case law of the Court of Justice. The contribution then looks, in section four, at the possibilities offered by the EU legal order for a more genuine commitment to respecting international standards of protection for social rights. Section five considers a different outcome of the conflict, exploring the possibility of a reduced commitment of the EU to the respect of international standards of protection of social rights. Section six is devoted to concluding remarks.
The Workplace Relations Reform Project
Authors: Kerr Anthony
Published: March 2017

Prior to October 1 2015, the system for resolving individual workplace related disputes in Ireland was both bewildering and confusing. Workers were faced with overlapping points of entry and bifurcated routes of appeal. The Workplace Relations Act 2015 seeks to remedy this by providing a single point of entry (the Workplace Relations Commission) and a single route of appeal (the Labour Court). This involves the dissolution of the Labour Relations Commission and the Employment Appeals Tribunal and the transfer of functions from Rights Commissioners, the Equality Tribunal and the National Employment Rights Authority to the Commission. This article outlines the background to the reform project and analyses the changes brought about by the 2015 Act.
Employment Status in Amateur Sport in Italy
Authors: Carmina Roberto
Published: March 2017

This paper examines the social status of amateur athletes in respect of discrimination they may encounter in comparison with professional athletes. It also addresses the issue of the Italian ‘vincolo sportivo’ and correlative violations of EU law on the free movement of workers. Finally, some possible solutions are proposed.