Unions, Employers, and Central Banks

This book focuses on some of the most important political-economic changes in advanced industrialized countries over the past two decades, namely, the sharp rise in unemployment in some countries and the growth of inequality in others. Using a variety of methodological approaches, the essays provide different pieces to this puzzle and explain how economic outcomes may be linked to macroeconomic policies and wage bargaining practices. Focusing on the experiences of northern European countries, the book also explores the intersection of partisan politics, the international economy, and nationally specific institutions.

"The result of years of empirical and theoretical work and debate, this book represents a major step ahead in the comparative study of modern capitalism, and especially of the impact of political institutions and institutional change on economic processes and outcomes." Wolfgang Streeck, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, "Studies of industrial relations increasingly need to take full account of the role of monetary institutions. The papers presented in this volume provide an authoritative basis for carrying out such analyses. Subsequent scholars will be extremely grateful to these authors." Colin Crouch, European University Institute, Florence, "This outstanding volume on the political economy of the social market economies of Northern Europe joins the literature on corporatism and coordinated wage bargaining with work on central banks, monetary policy and fiscal policy to produce a deeper understanding of how the problems of unemployment and growth are rooted in the institutional arrangements of these political economies. Since these countries form the economic pivot of the new Europe, this volume is essential reading for scholars interested in the dynamics of wage bargaining, unemployment, and growth in the emerging European Monetary Union." John D. Stephens, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill