The current crisis of intensive work regimes and the question of social exclusion in industrialized countries

The aim of this article is to analyze the difficulties currently being faced by regimes of social regulation of economic life and the ways in which they are being transformed. In order to address this complex question, transformations in the labour market are examined. Emphasis is given in particular to the fact that the decline in life-time jobs has had a destabilizing impact on employment systems. This is true not so much in terms of reduced employment. In fact, numerous job opportunities have been created in the tertiary sector, though insecure and badly paid, but these jobs do not reflect the traditional standards of social regulation and therefore entail a weakening of the mechanisms of social integration and a growing risk of exclusion. At this point the theme of the heterogeneity and polarization of working careers in service society is introduced, highlighting in particular the variety of regulatory forms with their different and changing mixes of family, state and market. These policy mixes form the basis for the various models of welfare capitalism identified here. Finally, consideration is given to the two main responses to this transitional phase in industrialized countries. On the one hand, in English-speaking countries which are characterised by intensive deregulation and the spread of flexible forms of work; on the other hand, in the countries of continental Europe where the redistributive modes of traditional welfare programmes have been preserved. Neither of these strategies, however, has produced new and lasting prospects for synergies between the economy and the society. Potential regulatory innovations would presuppose a reappraisal of modes of activity that are at present 'invisible' such as production for own consumption, family care, volunteer and charitable work and the creation of social capital. Political steps in this direction could lead to a new balance between state, market and family that would secure the level of cooperation needed for socially embedded economic life. -- Der Aufsatz analysiert die gegenwärtigen Schwierigkeiten, mit denen verschiedene Regimes sozialer Regulierung der Wirtschaft konfrontiert sind, einschließlich ihrer Transformationspfade. Um dieser komplexen Fragestellung gerecht zu werden, werden zunächst die allgemeinen Veränderungsprozesse auf dem Arbeitsmarkt dargestellt. Besonderes Gewicht wird dabei auf die Tatsache gelegt, daß der Abbau von lebenslangen Arbeitsverhältnissen das Beschäftigungssystem massiv destabilisiert. Das bezieht sich nicht ausschließlich oder gar vorrangig auf die rückläufigen Beschäftigungsmöglichkeiten. Gleichzeitig sind nämlich im Dienstleistungssektor zahlreiche neue Arbeitsplätze entstanden - wenn auch in der Regel unsichere und schlecht bezahlte. Sie spiegeln ein geringeres Maß gesellschaftlicher Regulierung und implizieren damit eine schwächere soziale Integration sowie ein höheres Risiko sozialer Ausgrenzung. In diesem Zusammenhang werden die Trends zur Heterogenisierung und Polarisierung der Berufsbiographien in der Dienstleistungsgesellschaft thematisiert und dabei besonders die Vielfalt der länderspezifischen Mischungen von Zuständigkeiten von Familie, Staat und Markt dargelegt. Diese bilden die Grundlage für die in diesem Beitrag identifizierten Modelle wohlfahrtsstaatlicher Kapitalismen. Es lassen sich zwei verschiedene Reaktionsmuster der Industriestaaten auf diese Veränderungsprozesse unterscheiden. Auf der einen Seite stehen USA und Großbritannien mit ihren ausgeprägten Deregulierungspolitiken und der Ausweitung von flexiblen Arbeitsverhältnissen; auf der anderen Seite die Länder Kontinentaleuropas, die auf die Beibehaltung der Transferorientierung traditioneller Wohlfahrtsprogramme setzen. Keine dieser Strategien führte jedoch zu neuen und dauerhaften Synergie-Effekten zwischen Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Die Möglichkeiten für innovative Regulierungen - so die hier vertretene These - sind daran gebunden, daß bislang 'unsichtbare' Produktionen aufgewertet werden, wie beispielsweise Produktion zum Eigenverbrauch, unbezahlte Tätigkeiten wie Familienarbeit, Solidarität und die Bildung von sozialem Kapital. Ein solcher Ansatz könnte richtungsweisend sein für ein neues regulatives Gleichgewicht, das den Mindestanforderungen an Kooperation Rechnung trägt und damit die Voraussetzung für ein sozial integriertes Wirtschaftsleben gewährleistet.

The current crisis of intensive work regimes and the question of social exclusion in industrialized countries

"Der Aufsatz analysiert die gegenwärtigen Schwierigkeiten, mit denen verschiedene Regimes sozialer Regulierung der Wirtschaft konfrontiert sind, einschließlich ihrer Transformationspfade. Um dieser komplexen Fragestellung gerecht zu werden, werden zunächst die allgemeinen Veränderungsprozesse auf dem Arbeitsmarkt dargestellt. Besonderes Gewicht wird dabei auf die Tatsache gelegt, daß der Abbau von lebenslangen Arbeitsverhältnissen das Beschäftigungssystem massiv destabilisiert. Das bezieht sich nicht ausschließlich oder gar vorrangig auf die rückläufigen Beschäftigungsmöglichkeiten. Gleichzeitig sind nämlich im Dienstleistungssektor zahlreiche neue Arbeitsplätze entstanden - wenn auch in der Regel unsichere und schlecht bezahlte. Sie spiegeln ein geringeres Maß gesellschaftlicher Regulierung und implizieren damit eine schwächere soziale Integration sowie ein höheres Risiko sozialer Ausgrenzung. In diesem Zusammenhang werden die Trends zur Heterogenisierung und Polarisierung der Berufsbiographien in der Dienstleistungsgesellschaft thematisiert und dabei besonders die Vielfalt der länderspezifischen Mischungen von Zuständigkeiten von Familie, Staat und Markt dargelegt. Diese bilden die Grundlage für die in diesem Beitrag identifizierten Modelle wohlfahrtsstaatlicher Kapitalismen. Es lassen sich zwei verschiedene Reaktionsmuster der Industriestaaten auf diese Veränderungsprozesse unterscheiden. Auf der einen Seite stehen USA und Großbritannien mit ihren ausgeprägten Deregulierungspolitiken und der Ausweitung von flexiblen Arbeitsverhältnissen; auf der anderen Seite die Länder Kontinentaleuropas, die auf die Beibehaltung der Transferorientierung traditioneller Wohlfahrtsprogramme setzen. Keine dieser Strategien führte jedoch zu neuen und dauerhaften Synergie-Effekten zwischen Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Die Möglichkeiten für innovative Regulierungen - so die hier vertretene These - sind daran gebunden, daß bislang „unsichtbare“ Produktionen aufgewertet werden, wie beispielsweise Produktion zum Eigenverbrauch, unbezahlte Tätigkeiten wie Familienarbeit, Solidarität und die Bildung von sozialem Kapital. Ein solcher Ansatz könnte richtungsweisend sein für ein neues regulatives Gleichgewicht, das den Mindestanforderungen an Kooperation Rechnung trägt und damit die Voraussetzung für ein sozial integriertes Wirtschaftsleben gewährleistet." (Autorenreferat)"The aim of this article is to analyze the difficulties currently being faced by regimes of social regulation of economic life and the ways in which they are being transformed. In order to address this complex question, transformations in the labour market are examined. Emphasis is given in particular to the fact that the decline in life-time jobs has had a destabilizing impact on employment systems. This is true not so much in terms of reduced employment. In fact, numerous job opportunities have been created in the tertiary sector, though insecure and badly paid, but these jobs do not reflect the traditional standards of social regulation and therefore entail a weakening of the mechanisms of social integration and a growing risk of exclusion. At this point the theme of the heterogeneity and polarization of working careers in service society is introduced, highlighting in particular the variety of regulatory forms with their different and changing mixes of family, state and market. These policy mixes form the basis for the various models of welfare capitalism identified here. Finally, consideration is given to the two main responses to this transitional phase in industrialized countries. On the one hand, in English-speaking countries which are characterised by intensive deregulation and the spread of flexible forms of work; on the other hand, in the countries of continental Europe where the redistributive modes of traditional welfare programmes have been preserved. Neither of these strategies, however, has produced new and lasting prospects for synergies between the economy and the society. Potential regulatory innovations would presuppose a reappraisal of modes of activity that are at present 'invisible' such as production for own consumption, family care, volunteer and charitable work and the creation of social capital. Political steps in this direction could lead to a new balance between state, market and family that would secure the level of cooperation needed for socially embedded economic life." (author's abstract

Urban Sociology and Developed Capitalism

The author examines the development of socio-territorial research in Italy after World War II. The growth of interest in socio-territorial research developed during the 1960’s when it became clear that there was a link between the process of urbanization and the socio-economic development of the country as a whole. By the end of the decade the classical methodology of socio-economic came into question. A newer tendency appeared in the framework of the Marxist tradition along the lines of the works of H. Lefebvre, H. Ch. de Lauwee and others. Of particular importance was M. Castells’; La question urbaine (The Urban Question], the works of Godard, Lojkine, Petriceille and the works of F. Ferrarotti about Italian society. This new method rejects the autonomy of urban sociology. The city, the traditional subject of study, is now regarded an inseparable part of social organization which must be understood in all of its economic, political, social and ideological expressions. Thus, after 1968 it is difficult to speak of classical urban sociology. Urban questions appear as problems of socio-economic analysis. A particularly successful example of this type of analysis is the studies of socio-economic processes in southern Italy. Urban questions are discussed as socio-political problems particularly after 1968/69 and 1977: The topic of study is aimed at the increasing social conflict of all kinds and the consequent intervention of the state and public institutions. New studies, then, are directed at the problems of the institutional crisis in Italian cities, »urban strife«, administrative reforms, the structure of public expenditure and many other aspects of modern Italian life which characterize the crisis of developed capitalism

The Use of the Concept of Reciprocity for the Interpretation of Contemporary Advanced Industrial Societies: Ambiguities and Assets

The author  rejects an  mechanical application  of reciprocity foranalysing social relations, both in past and current contexts. As the norm of reci­ procity is often invoked by the actors themselves, the research can reproduce actors' interested representations of their relations. The paper indicates some of the pro­blems involved

Immigrés à Milan : faible ségrégation mais fortes tensions

A partir des années 1970, l'Italie est devenue un pays d'immigration et au cours des dix dernières années, le quatrième pays de l'Union européenne en nombre d'immigrants originaires des pays les plus pauvres et l'un des trois pays les plus attractifs. A Milan, qui abrite le nombre d'immigrés le plus élevé du pays (14,2%), la faible ségrégation en matière de logement des populations immigrées s'inscrit dans un contexte plus global de pauvreté et de mal-être qui ne prend cependant pas la forme d'un ghetto ni de grandes zones périphériques en crise. Milan se caractérise par une certaine mixité dans les logements sociaux en périphérie et dans les quartiers centraux. Dans certains cas, la concentration d'une population alliée à des taux très élevés de ségrégation, même dans de petites zones, donne lieu à de violents conflits à caractère spécifiquement ethno-spatial. Les problèmes liés aux camps et baraquements roms sont aussi causes de tensions. Les conflits sont souvent mal maîtrisés par les pouvoirs locaux et sont abordés principalement sous l'angle de la sécurité et de l'ordre public

The Struggle against Social Exclusion at the Local Level: Diversity and Convergence in European Cities

This article is based on the results of the European comparative research project ESOPO (Evaluation of Social Policies at the Local Urban Level: Income Support for the Able-Bodied) directed by Chiara Saraceno (Saraceno, 2002). The research explored the  configuration and impact of income support programmes in favour of able-bodied individuals in 13 cities of 6 European countries.2 In the face of rising unemployment and for a growing section of the population the difficulty of finding a steady job, most European countries have adopted anti-poverty strategies. Minimum income benefit in various forms constitutes a central element of income support for disadvantaged populations. Although its stated objective is often the same – to combat exclusion – there is a fairly large degree of heterogeneity in the way this policy is organized at local level, even in strongly centralized countries. Beyond simply revealing institutional differences, the comparative study of local experiences gives us a closer understanding of the rationale according to which each city – with its own mode of development, political and social history, culture, associative or community resources and, more broadly, the characteristics of its civil society – structures its anti-poverty strategies. Comparative analysis of local situations has the advantage of highlighting the different complexity of the processes at work, as well as of the local configurations which result from them. These may involve arrangements and relationships between public institutions, intermediate organizations, the Church, family networks and local community. Moreover, such an approach allows us to discern both the diversified forms and levels of intervention of these various actors and the principles involved by looking at the interaction between people and institutions. In drawing on this research which is focused on a comparative study of the models of anti-poverty social policies, we will discuss some important issues. First, we will argue that poverty cannot be separated from the social conditions which generate it and from the social structures in which it is embedded. Second, we will demonstrate that the comparative study of anti-poverty models enables us to define more precisely the systems that mobilize resources other than those implemented on the basis of well known and formalized criteria. In fact they are sometimes very localized and based on particular arrangements between the public sphere and the civil society. Finally, we will show how these local systems that implement anti-poverty social policies are not necessarily leading to strong institutionalization and public regulation through a linear process of modernization. Although the challenge of social integration is driving all countries towards greater intervention, it is also obliging them to introduce new and more flexible forms of regulations

The Struggle against Social Exclusion at the Local Level: Diversity and Convergence in European Cities

This article is based on the results of the European comparative research project ESOPO (Evaluation of Social Policies at the Local Urban Level: Income Support for the Able-Bodied) directed by Chiara Saraceno (Saraceno, 2002). The research explored the  configuration and impact of income support programmes in favour of able-bodied individuals in 13 cities of 6 European countries.2 In the face of rising unemployment and for a growing section of the population the difficulty of finding a steady job, most European countries have adopted anti-poverty strategies. Minimum income benefit in various forms constitutes a central element of income support for disadvantaged populations. Although its stated objective is often the same – to combat exclusion – there is a fairly large degree of heterogeneity in the way this policy is organized at local level, even in strongly centralized countries. Beyond simply revealing institutional differences, the comparative study of local experiences gives us a closer understanding of the rationale according to which each city – with its own mode of development, political and social history, culture, associative or community resources and, more broadly, the characteristics of its civil society – structures its anti-poverty strategies. Comparative analysis of local situations has the advantage of highlighting the different complexity of the processes at work, as well as of the local configurations which result from them. These may involve arrangements and relationships between public institutions, intermediate organizations, the Church, family networks and local community. Moreover, such an approach allows us to discern both the diversified forms and levels of intervention of these various actors and the principles involved by looking at the interaction between people and institutions. In drawing on this research which is focused on a comparative study of the models of anti-poverty social policies, we will discuss some important issues. First, we will argue that poverty cannot be separated from the social conditions which generate it and from the social structures in which it is embedded. Second, we will demonstrate that the comparative study of anti-poverty models enables us to define more precisely the systems that mobilize resources other than those implemented on the basis of well known and formalized criteria. In fact they are sometimes very localized and based on particular arrangements between the public sphere and the civil society. Finally, we will show how these local systems that implement anti-poverty social policies are not necessarily leading to strong institutionalization and public regulation through a linear process of modernization. Although the challenge of social integration is driving all countries towards greater intervention, it is also obliging them to introduce new and more flexible forms of regulations

Immigrés à Milan : faible ségrégation mais fortes tensions

A partir des années 1970, l'Italie est devenue un pays d'immigration et au cours des dix dernières années, le quatrième pays de l'Union européenne en nombre d'immigrants originaires des pays les plus pauvres et l'un des trois pays les plus attractifs. A Milan, qui abrite le nombre d'immigrés le plus élevé du pays (14,2%), la faible ségrégation en matière de logement des populations immigrées s'inscrit dansun contexte plus global de pauvreté et de mal-être qui ne prend cependant pas la forme d'un ghetto ni de grandes zones périphériques en crise. Milan se caractérise par une certaine mixité dans les logements sociaux en périphérie et dans les quartiers centraux. Dans certains cas, la concentration d'une population alliée à des taux très élevés de ségrégation, même dans de petites zones, donne lieu à de violents conflits à caractère spécifiquement ethno-spatial. Les problèmes liés aux camps et baraquements roms sont aussi causes de tensions. Les conflits sont souvent mal maîtrisés par les pouvoirs locaux et sont abordés principalement sous l'angle de la sécurité et de l'ordre public

Does a Southern European Model Exist?

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1460846012006194