Issues of social inclusion and social protection were brought to the fore of political and academic discussions once again by the Treaty of Lisbon. The fight against social exclusion, the promotion of social justice and protection, as well as social cohesion are confirmed to be among the aims of the Union (Article 3 TEU). Moreover, requirements linked to the guarantee of adequate social protection and the fight against social exclusion should be considered both at the levels of design and implementation of EU policies and activities (Article 9 TFEU). The interaction between legal instruments and policy coordination in the field of social inclusion and social protection constitutes the theme of this book. The contributions essentially inquire whether there is any interaction at all, or if the two realms of law and policy of the EU function in parallel. If there is any sort of interchange between the two, in what areas is it taking place, and what does it result into? Legal and political scholars were invited to address these questions and analyse the involvement of the European Union in promoting social inclusion and protection. The book opens with two introductory chapters on the political and legal contexts, and then focuses on the specific cases of health care, pension systems, and means of combating poverty. Each subject matter has been addressed in a complementary fashion through the lenses of juridical and political sciences, which lends the book a cross-disciplinary approach.

The economic unification of Europe has created a lot of victims. The realization of the single market has taken place without any adjusting or accompanying economic and social policies. Its effects on social and human relations go far beyond the economic and commercial areas its authors had in mind. It has in fact led to changes in European society that are so far-reaching that they could very well be characterized as mutations. This book looks at the phenomenon of social dumping in the wider context of liberalized social competition as steered by the European Union. It contains a number of testimonies by people who actively fight social dumping, with special attention paid to the harrowing dumping practices in the road transport sector. Some of the authors also examine the phenomenon of social dumping in relation to compliance with the fundamental right of all workers to respect for their dignity as human beings. In this respect, the underlying question is whether, by tolerating legislation that allows human dignity to be violated by social dumping, the European and national legislators in fact infringe on this key fundamental right.This book is intended for practitioners, academics, researchers and policy-makers working in the area of social policy.

This book provides for a comprehensive overview of the various areas of European labour law: fundamental rights, free movement of workers and posting, equal treatment, a-typical forms of employment, collective bargaining and collective agreements, restructuring of enterprises and health and safety. The chapters are written by eminent experts from a considerable number of EU Member States. Most of them are written by two authors from different Member States. As a result of this duo-authorship the book does not approach European labour law from a single country perspective, but intends to give insight in the different ways European labour was received and implemented in the various Member States. The book does not only describe the current state of affairs, but also critically assesses how the interaction of EU legislature, Court of Justice, Member States and social partners has contributed to the development of EU labour law. As such, it is not only a comprehensive introduction to European labour law, but provides also food for thought as part of advanced study in this area. This handbook, dealing with all important areas of labour law, written from several perspectives by experts, but within a restricted number of pages, is therefore also excellent study material for master programmes of European labour law. With contributions by Edoardo Ales (University of Naples Parthenope, Italy), Mark Bell (Trinity College Dublin, Ireland), Niklas Bruun (Hanken School of Economics, Finland), Mijke Houwerzijl (Tilburg University, The Netherlands), Teun Jaspers (Utrecht University, The Netherlands), Sylvaine Laulom (Universite Lumiere Lyon 2, France), Antonio Lo Faro (University of Catania, Italy), Pascale Lorber (University of Leicester, United Kingdom), Ann Numhauser-Henning (Lund University, Sweden), Frans Pennings (Utrecht University, The Netherlands), Saskia Peters (University of Groningen, The Netherlands), Jan Popma (Dutch Labour Inspectorate, The Netherlands), Sophie Robin-Olivier (Universite Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne, France) and Herwig Verschueren (University of Antwerp, Belgium).

Where do I belong? This is a question all mobile persons are bound to ask themselves at one time or another. When crossing borders, individuals establish links with States, which can be the basis for legal claims against these States.This book discusses the issue of these links and, more specifically, the question of how EU law defines the link needed to obtain the right to reside in a Member State and the right to social and employment protection in that State. When it comes to claiming rights from States, traditionally nationality is the answer to the question where a person belongs. However, in the context of European integration and the development of an EU legal framework of internal market rules, citizenship rights and immigration rules, different answers to these questions have been developedFrom this perspective the various chapters of this book examine instruments such as the Citizens Directive 2004/38, the Family Reunification Directive 2003/86, the Long-term Residence Directive 2003/109, the Social Security Coordination Regulation 883/2004, the Rome I Regulation 593/2008 and the Posting of Workers Directive 96/71. The case-law of the Court of Justice on these issues is of course a central element therein.The analyses of scholars from different legal disciplines in the fourteen chapters of this book show that EU law gives a multitude of answers to the question which link is necessary and sufficient to create an individual's right vis--vis a State. The definition of this link, the criteria used and the legal consequences differ according to the legal framework the individual finds himself/herself in and the legal instrument he/she invokes. Moreover, the criteria used in legislation and case-law continue to be the subject of problems of interpretation and application, which in turn leads to legal uncertainty or even confusion.