KVV-Kommentar (Proseminar - Politik und Wirtschaft)
CURRENT ISSUES OF TRADE UNIONISM IN EUROPE: AN INTRODUCTION
With
the creation of a unified single market and the launching of a common currency
in the EU, as well as the soon to be realized accession of new member states
from eastern Europe, trade unions have been faced with a major challenge to
their future as representatives of the labor force. The objective of this
seminar is to analyze major developments and review the key policies which have
shaped the political economy of Europe and the role of trade unions over the
last decade. Our focus will be on labor (trade unions, works councils) as actors
in the most recent processes of unification in the European Union and in the
transformation of the former socialist countries of Central and Eastern Europe.
While special reference will be made to the German actors and Germany's role,
the seminar will offer participants ample opportunities for comparative analysis
and focused interest on labor in selected other countries as well. Among the
issues which are likely to be included are such hallmarks of this period as
German unification, the creation of European Works Councils, the labor market
problems associated with posted workers, foreign direct investment in Central
and Eastern Europe, Social Pacts, the European Social Dialogue, cross-border
collective bargaining and the role of the European Trade Union Confederation.
The
seminar will be conducted in English. A reader containing the assigned texts
will be made available at a local copy shop during the first week of the
semester for purchase.
Grading
(Schein) will be based on regular participation, an oral presentation and the
submission of a paper in English. Deadline for the paper will be August 15,
2003. Due attention will be given to a review of the basics in the
techniques of academic research and writing taught in the “Sternchen”-Seminar.
Consideration will be given to the fact that for most students, this paper is
likely be the first such exertion in English. In other words, the difficulty of
writing such a paper in English is recognized.
Contact:
mfichter@zedat.fu-berlin.de, Ihnestr. 26,
Zimmer 212
Office hours: Tuesday, 10-12 or by appointment.