Undergraduate Course: Labour Market Policy in Europe (SCPL10028)
Course Outline
| School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Credits | 20 |
| Home subject area | Social Policy |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | Labour market policies have become an increasingly important area of social policy activity in European welfare states in recent decades, and have also become a key area of policy intervention and coordination by the European Union. This course provides a comprehensive overview of the policy instruments and strategies that are deployed across Europe to protect particular working-age individuals from economic risks while simultaneously underpinning the efficient functioning of the labour market. Policies covered in the course include classic labour market interventions such as employment protection regulations, unemployment benefits and active labour market policies, as well as newer instruments of labour market policy, such as in-work benefits or negative income taxes and reforms to public employment services. The course will focus in particular on the systematic comparison of policies across the member states of the European Union, the costs and benefits of alternative policy approaches and mixes, and the socio-economic and political drivers of labour market policy stability and change in Europe.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students should be at a level commensurate with Edinburgh University Year 3 or Year 4 students. |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of the course, students will be expected to:
Have a thoroughgoing knowledge of the range policy instruments through which governments intervene to protect working-age individuals from economic risks
Be able to systematically compare a range of labour market policies across national contexts in Europe, based on a critical awareness of the advantages and limitations of alternative policy indicators
Be able to read, and engage critically with, the evidence from individual- and aggregate-level evaluations of labour market policy interventions
Understand the socio-political and economic determinants of labour market policy variation and change
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Assessment Information
| The course is assessed through a 3000 word class paper (50% of total grade) and a 2-hour unseen examination (50% of total grade). |
Special Arrangements
| None |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
Not entered |
| Transferable skills |
Weekly student presentations (weeks 3-9) will enable students to develop transferable skills in cooperative group work, and the synthesis and presentation of policy evaluation evidence. |
| Reading list |
Beer, P de and Schills, T. (eds.) (2009) The Labour Market Triangle: Employment Protection, Unemployment Compensation and Activation in Europe, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar
Betzelt, S. and Bothfeld, S. (eds.) (2011) Activation and Labour Market Reforms in Europe, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan
Clasen, J. and Clegg, D. (eds.) (2011) Regulating the Risk of Unemployment: National Adaptations to Post-Industrial Labour Markets in Europe, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Fraser, N., Guttierez, R. and Pena-Casas, R. (eds.) (2011) Working Poverty in Europe, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan
Freedland, M. et al. (2007) Public Employment Services and European Law, Oxford: Oxford University Press
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| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Labour Market Policies, Europe, Comparative |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Daniel Clegg
Tel:
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Louise Angus
Tel: (0131 6)50 3923
Email: |
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