Six families of flexicurity indicators developed at the Hans Boeckler Foundation

Abstract

"The paper is an overview of over 30 publications on six models with flexicurity indicators developed at the Hans-Böckler-Foundation for monitoring and analysis of flexicurity. The latter is a new European labour market policy which should compensate the ongoing flexibilization of employment relations (resulting in easy dismissals, adjustable working time, and variable wages) by advances in employment security and social security. Flexibility is promoted by employers, whereas trade unions are concerned with security. The models are aimed at analyzing flexicurity from the following viewpoints: (1) neo-liberal, (2) trade-unionist, (3) of the European welfare state, (4) regarding precarious work, (5) regarding professional training and lifelong learning, and (6) regarding trends in collective agreements. All the six models provide empirical evidence of increasing flexibility together with decline of social security and rise of precarious employment. This is a serious warning against improper implementation of flexicurity and one-sided use of this policy in favor of employers.

Finally six policy proposals are made: (1) to introduce flexinsurance, (2) to impose workplace tax, (3) to provide basic income, (4) to constrain financial markets, (5) to politicize and restructuralize trade unions, and (6) separate politics from economy." [author's abstract]