Five years after the global financial crisis, and trillions of dollars in stimulus spending later, the crisis not only remains unresolved, but risks entering a new deeper phase in southern Europe. The global turbulence, although experienced with differing degrees of intensity and dislocation around the world, manifests as high unemployment,…

On February 1, 2012, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels signed a "right to work" (RTW) provision in the state's labor laws, making Indiana the 23rd RTW state in the nation. In addition to becoming the 23rd RTW state in the nation, Indiana is the first in more than a decade to pass a law undermining the ability of unions to organize and…

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to review two accounts of the history of workplace learning and training in the USA that emphasize issues of power and control in the determination of what training occurs, and place these issues at the center of their analyses. Design/methodology/approach: The two texts are reviewed and a constructivist paradigm…

"Fortune" magazine's articulation of productivity during the period 1969 to 1972 was a skillfully crafted work of propaganda that mixed public perception about (a) the younger generation, (b) issues about the growing rate of inflation, (c) shifting employment sectors, (d) increasing nominal wages, and (e) declining rate of profit.…

It is hard to imagine a more critical time for helping the low-skilled and disenfranchised youth in our communities to become gainfully employed. Even as the nation suffers through its worst economic downturn in decades, America's business and industry leaders are predicting an unprecedented shortage of educated and skilled workers to meet the…

Contracts reflected worker concern over inflation and unemployment, and collective bargaining during the year was heavy, as labor-management negotiations occurred in such key industries as trucking, automobiles, electrical equipment, rubber, and meatpacking. (Editor/TA)

Recent trends that affect the U.S. system of industrial relations are examined. The most important of these is internationalization. The U.S. industrial relations system is compared with that of Europe and Japan, and suggestions for improving our competitiveness in international markets are made. (Author/RM)

This article cites a variety of sources and synthesizes a number of studies on the social implications of technological innovations (microelectronics). These studies were related to six European and Asian countries and were also concerned with the international division of labor. (SSH)

Describes Sweden's massive effort to bring democracy to the workplace through programs of worker education and participation in industrial decision making. Stresses that the United States can learn much from the Swedish workplace education experience. (Author/MJL)

The materials in this pamphlet describe the difficulties encountered by various racial and ethnic groups as they attempted to become assimilated into the American labor force. The experiences and problems faced by blacks, Jews, and immigrants from England, Ireland, the Scandinavian countries, China, Italy, and Puerto Rico are described in an…

Includes "Canadian Industrial Relations: An Introductory Overview" (Blyton, Goodman); "Overview of Canadian Labour Law" (Miller); "Industrial Conflict and Resolution in Canada and Britain" (Haiven); "Collective Bargaining in the Public Sector in Canada" (Calvert); "Canadian Automobile Industry: Work…

The field of industrial relations, to which labour studies and labour education are closely linked both historically and institutionally, is an interdisciplinary field and, as such, has never securely claimed a single theoretical foundation. This article draws attention to a theoretical framework that may be useful as a way of promoting discussion…

Purpose: Responding to the recent split in the US labor movement, this paper aims to argue that learning must become an integral part of a progressive union devoted to organizing. Design/methodology/approach: This paper traces the evolution of vocational education in US industrial unions and critiques it in light of the challenges facing labor…

A study examined how the cross-national differences in the social contract among managers, unions, and government influenced adjustment strategies in steel. The restructuring process in eight major steel-producing countries was studied to determine who bore the costs of restructuring--employers, employees, or government--and which industrial…

Since the 1960s, the number of strikes by public employees, especially local government employees, has increased, and the number of employees belonging to unions or associations has about tripled. Recently, attention has been focused on strikes by public employees as a result of the strike in 1981 by air traffic controllers and their subsequent…