"Analysing the British Labour Force Survey, we highlight that dependent self-employed workers constitute a group distinct from both employees and independent self-employed workers in the labour market group. Dependent self-employed workers show characteristics of a more volatile labour market...

"This paper discusses free immigration to regulated labour markets (as in Europe) and to unregulated labour markets (as in the US), and explores the implications for migration flows of collective agreements, employment protection laws, product market regulations etc. It is argued that the...

"Against the background of the current endeavours to relax dismissal protection legislation while simultaneously eliminating the possibility of using fixed-term employment contracts without justifiable reason, this paper outlines the distinctive features of these two areas of individual labour...

"The years of transition in Central and Eastern Europe brought with them the unprecedented - in these societies - phenomenon of restructuring with dismissals and growing unemployment. Moreover with the emergence and development of the private sector, new enterprises started to leave former...

"The financial crisis drew attention to the way in which workers in certain countries had been able to sustain consumption through housing and consumer credit despite insecure labour-market positions. This indicates a need to expand the analysis of the relationship between flexibility and...

"In Germany, there exist around 160 threshold values stating that certain labour laws and regulations apply only in establishments above a critical size (usually defined by the number of employees). As crossing a threshold may result in additional costs for the firm, it is often hypothesized...

"Spätestens seit Anfang der 80er Jahre ist das in den meisten westeuropäischen Ländern während der 60er und 70er Jahre weiter ausgebaute System des gesetzlichen und kollektivvertraglichen Kündigungsschutzes zunehmend in den Mittelpunkt der 'Flexibilisierungs'- und 'De-Regulierungs'-Debatte...

"In Germany, there exist around 160 threshold values stating that certain labour laws and regulations apply only in establishments above a critical size (usually defined by the number of employees). As crossing a threshold may result in additional costs for the firm, it is often hypothesized...

This volume contains the papers and the supplementary papers presented at the 37th Ottobeuren Seminar on the subject of "labor contracts." They deal with the reasons for and the effects of regulations in individual and collective labor contracts. Their purpose is to contribute to a better...