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Dutch Politics: A new post-populist Phase?

by Rene Cuperus on 13 November 2012

Dutch Politics: A new post-populist Phase?

The new Dutch coalition government combines austerity politics with a ‘fair redistribution of pain’  This week, the new Dutch Government was installed, in the presence of Queen Beatrix. The two-party cabinet will consist of the conservative-liberal VVD and centre-left Labour Party (PvdA) – the two winning parties of the September 12th national parliamentary elections. VVD-leader Mark […]

The Magical Return of the Political Centre

by Rene Cuperus on 18 September 2012

The Magical Return of the Political Centre

The Dutch political laboratory is alive and kicking. Populist actors may have taken past headlines but the election marked the dramatic return of the pro-European centre ground. ‘The political centre is back’, ‘Again the purple coalition of red and blue’, ‘Voters want cooperation. Not polarisation’: these are some of the headlines of Dutch newspapers the […]

Beyond the Sunday Rhetoric of Social Democratic Basic Values

by Rene Cuperus on 4 April 2012

Beyond the Sunday Rhetoric of Social Democratic Basic Values

We have entered an age of fear. Insecurity is once again an active ingredient of political life in Western democracies. Insecurity born of terrorism, but also, and more insidiously, fear of  the uncontrollable speed of change, fear of the loss of employment, fear of losing ground to others in an increasingly unequal distribution of resources, […]

The European Paradox: Brussels Must Become More ‘European’

by Rene Cuperus on 26 January 2012

The European Paradox: Brussels Must Become More ‘European’

Yet again historians, sociologists, cultural studies academics, and political scientists betray their academic duty. Previously they’ve shied away, in numbers far too big for comfort, from the problems of immigration, integration and Islam. They became traitors to their own expert knowledge on human society by failing to, in a timely and loud fashion, single out […]

A Bazooka Against the European Electorate

by Rene Cuperus on 20 December 2011

A Bazooka Against the European Electorate

And again, historians, sociologists, cultural studies academics and political scientists betray their academic duty. Earlier, they shied away from the problems of immigration, integration and Islam en masse. They turned traitor to their expert knowledge of human society by failing to signal the shadow sides of multicultural integration in a loud and timely manner. They […]

Europe’s Burning House

by Rene Cuperus on 8 November 2011

Europe’s Burning House

What to do when pyromaniacs are extinguishing a house on fire? A house that has been set on fire by themselves. Do you leave them in peace or do you call them to order? That is one of the painful dilemmas of the contemporary eurocrisis. The metaphor of the EU as a burning house derives […]

Eurozone Blues

by Rene Cuperus on 21 September 2011

Eurozone Blues

In the Netherlands and Germany the left is propping up governing coalitions on the right in support of the eurozone. But are they getting a good deal in light of ongoing right-wing austerity politics?  Pinned down by the eurocrisis, both the social democratic PvdA in the Netherlands and the SPD in Germany are caught in […]

The Euro is Destroying Europe

by Rene Cuperus on 23 August 2011

The Euro is Destroying Europe

The Finns claim Greek islands, the Poles denounce the authoritarian dictate of France and Germany, the Dutch criticize the fiscal ethics of the Greek, and the Germans are agitated about the French pension age. This is asking for big trouble. The rescue operation for the euro pits national populations against each other instead of reconciling […]

The Party Paradox

by Rene Cuperus on 22 June 2011

The Party Paradox

There are two tales about party politics. In the first, political parties are moribund, if not on their last legs. Parties are said to have been in crisis or decline for decades and are believed to have lost virtually all their functions to the courts, the bureaucracy, the media, or powerful social organizations. Parties supposedly […]

Why was the Left trapped into Multiculturalism?

by Rene Cuperus on 8 June 2011

Why was the Left trapped into Multiculturalism?

When and why has the left become so culturalist, stressing essentialist notions of identity and the value of frozen group cultures? How come that the left, which was always in the egalitarian-equality business, have become so obsessed with difference, diversity and cultural inequalities? How is it possible that progressive liberals, who are ethical individualists, turn […]

The Refreshed Social Democracy that came in from the Norwegian Cold

by Rene Cuperus on 10 May 2011

Memos to the Left for the Progressive Governance Conference in Oslo, 12-13 May ‘’The 21st is the century of empowered citizens. The last thing they want is to be told what to do. If modern social democrats fall prey to the conservative politics of paternalism, upset citizens will extract their revenge at the voting booth. […]

Tough on Populism and the Causes of Populism

by Rene Cuperus on 29 April 2011

Tough on Populism and the Causes of Populism

 Nearly everywhere, it seems, there’s a populist revolt against established politics. From the True Finns in Finland, to the Front National 2.0 in France, to the Tea Party movement in America, and to the Sarrazin-upheaval in Germany the populist revolt continues. But what are the common causes? Why is it happening? Why now? What is […]

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Social Europe Edition Book

Zygmunt Bauman was a towering intellectual who saw and analysed – right up to his death in early 2017 – the great socio-political changes, often convulsive, in modern western society long before his peers. Here we highlight his prescient insights into what he dubbed ‘liquid modernity’ with 24 chapters on topics ranging from online loneliness via precarity/poverty/inequality to migration, fear of the ‘Other’ and the decline of the nation state. Chronicle of Crisis, 2011-16, written by one of the great chroniclers of our times, will be read and re-read for decades and more to come.


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Hans Böckler Stiftung Ad

The European Union needs a democratic restart to make people enthusiastic about the European idea again. A key factor in this is greater mandatory employee participation. The European Dialogue 2018 is sounding out what the requirements for strengthening the “Worker´s Voice” are and what the European politicians should do.


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New Social Europe Book

There is increasing evidence of widespread disillusion with the major shift to neoliberal economic policies that has taken place across much of the world. In this account of neoliberalism’s failings, Colin Crouch recognises some of its positive contributions but also notes conflicts within the neoliberal camp – particularly those between ‘market’ and ‘corporate’ forms of the strategy. Finally, he considers to what extent those behind the great experiment are now capable of accepting its reform.


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Explore employment estimates from the International Labour Organization. Create charts and download data with the WESO Data Finder.
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Benchmarking Working Europe

This year's Benchmarking Working Europe focuses on whether the European Union is really on the path towards convergence. Analysing the state of 'working Europe' with the aid of a multi-level and multi-dimensional set of indicators, Benchmarking Working Europe 2018 demonstrates that, despite renewed economic growth in GDP terms, the proceeds of this growth are being unequally shared and structural problems in the areas of education, infrastructure and R&D remain due to the EU's obsession with labour market deregulation and fiscal austerity.


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European Quality of Life Survey 2016

The overview report of Eurofound’s fourth European Quality of Life Survey is now available. Nearly 37,000 people in 33 European countries were interviewed as part of the Survey. The overview report, which presents findings for EU Member States, shows general progress in the three keys areas of review: quality of life, quality of society and quality of public services – though not in all countries and not for all social groups. The executive summary is available in 22 languages.


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