A remedy for all sins? Introducing a special issue on social enterprises and welfare regimes in Europe

The paper serves as an introduction to a special issue discussing social enterprises historical development and functions against welfare regimes across six European countries (France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Scotland, Serbia). While discussing convergences and diversities among them, the introduction proposes a comparative analytical framework for understanding social enterprises and welfare state as contingent phenomena developed at different point in time, within a broader political-institutional framework regulating states-peoples’ relationships

Between tradition and change: the Scottish social economy sector at a crossroad

This paper discusses the origins and motives behind the rich institutional and policy infrastructure that Scotland has developed in previous decades to support the social economy sector. Drawing on a large body of primary data collected through an EU funded project this paper reflects upon the effects of the economic and financial crisis, and how such changes may shed light on the future of the social economy in Scotland

Aspiring workers or striving consumers? Rethinking social exclusion in the era of consumer capitalism

https://doi.org/10.1080/21582041.2017.138583

Brexit, division and individual solidarity: what future for Europe? Evidence from eight European countries

Solidarity among member states, one of the European Union’s (EU) fundamental values, has recently been put to the test by numerous and diverse challenges that have led to a “crisis of solidarity.” In the United Kingdom, the decision in June 2016 by the electorate to vote to leave the EU revealed the British dimension of this crisis. However, little is known about the perceptions of other European citizens on this decision, even though it has contributed to shaping the present and future of the EU. In this article, using a representative survey conducted in eight European countries, including the United Kingdom, we aim to explore and contrast cross-country evidence on individual perceptions on Brexit. We then aim to establish if an association exists between the opinions on Brexit and the individual solidaristic attitudes and concrete behaviors of the survey respondents. The complex relationship between opinions on this event and expressions of solidarity at different levels (local, national, European, and beyond) will be explored using multivariate regression techniques as well as the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the survey respondents

Political participation of unemployed youth: the moderator effect of associational membership

<span class="abs_content">This article discusses how associational membership can compensate for that lack of opportunities and motivation necessary for political participation that unemployment usually provokes. We investigate such a moderator effect of associational membership by means of a CATI survey of young people realized in two different cities: Turin in Italy and Kielce in Poland. The survey was part of a larger research on youth unemployment funded by the EU FP7 program (Younex). We propose an exploratory analysis allowing us to assess at a low level of abstraction and through a local level comparison, how far associational membership performs even across different contexts as a promoter of political engagement of a specific group of young, deprived, individuals.</span><br /

Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers’ Integration in European Labour Markets

This open access book discusses how, and to what extent, the legal and institutional regimes and the socio-cultural environments of a range of European countries (the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Italy, Switzerland and the UK), in the framework of EU laws and policies, have a beneficial or negative impact on the effective capacity of these countries to integrate migrants, refugees and asylum seekers into their labour markets. The analysis builds on the understanding of socio-cultural, institutional and legal factors as “barriers” or “enablers”; elements that may facilitate or obstruct the integration processes. The book examines the two dimensions of integration being access to the labour market (which, translated into a rights language means the right to work) with its corollaries (recognition of qualifications, vocational training, etc.), and non-discriminatory working conditions (which, translated into a rights language means right to both formal and substantial equality) and its corollaries of benefits and duties deriving from joining the labour market. It thereby offers a novel approach to labour market integration and migration/asylum issues given its focus on legal aspects, which includes most recent policy changes and legal decisions (including litigation cases). The robust, evidence-based and comparative research illustrated in the book provides academics and students, but also practitioners and policy makers, with up to date knowledge that will likely impact positively on policy changes needed to better address integration conundrums

Who cares? The social care sector and the future of youth employment

https://doi.org/10.1332/030557316X1477831216518

Europe's Legal Peripheries: Migration, Asylum and the European Labour Market

The participation of foreign nationals in European labour markets is an effective tool that facilitates those migrants enjoying a more fulfilling life, while at the same time contributing to Europe’s wealth and economic and social development. However, many norms that regulate migration and labour migration undermine this spirit by limiting, both directly and indirectly, non-EU nationals’ access to European labour markets

Defining the gig economy: platform capitalism and the reinvention of precarious work

Purpose – This article seeks to answer the question: how should we conceptualise the “gig economy”? In doing so the authors shall explore if gig economy work should be understood as a novel concept that stands alone, a concept that is a subtype, or whether it may in fact be conceptually redundant. Design/methodology/approach – The authors conduct a thematic analysis of interview data drawn from 27 interviews with policymakers, trade union officials, key figures within labour organisations and gig economy workers. Findings – The authors reveal how, from the perspective of key stakeholders, the concept of the gig economy exhibits a lack of “differentiation” from the long-established concept of precarious work of which it is best understood as a subtype. Research limitations/implications – The empirical findings from the authors’ study should be regarded as limited in terms of being situated in the specific employment context of the UK. Nevertheless, the implications of the study have a broader reach. The authors seek to provoke debate and discussion among scholars across disciplines and contexts working in the areas of precarious work and the gig economy. The authors’ analysis will be of interest to scholars who are concerned with how they conceptualise “new” forms of work. Originality/value – The analysis offers a novel intervention by revealing how key stakeholders perceive the gig economy through a prism of continuity rather than change and connect it with broader processes of precarity

‘Nothing about us without us’: organizing disabled people’s solidarity within and beyond borders in a polarized age

This article examines collective action and the alliances between social movement organizations engaged in the work of solidarity with disabled people within and across borders during austerity. Building upon social movement theory, specifically political opportunities and resource mobilisation, we focus our analysis on data from in-depth interviews with thirty-five organizations at the UK and European levels, where we examine both how solidarity is operationalized by such organizations and the everyday cooperation and alliances they build with others in a UK policy context that has been hostile to disabled people and a European context which disabled people’s solidarity organizations have sought to seize as political opportunities. Our study therefore adopts a multi-level approach by analysing the building of alliances between organizations at the local, national and transnational levels and it reveals the impact of the political context and organisational pressures which can diminish resources and generate competition, thus placing strains on solidarity between disabled people