This work explores the evolutionary dynamic exhibited by the trajectory of unfair dismissal law in Britain and Australia. A different comparative evolutionary dynamic is observed in the phase leading up to the enactment of a statutory unfair dismissal scheme and in the period subsequent to enactment. It is argued that the shared common law origin of the legal systems of Britain and Australia masks significant divergence in their respective labour law traditions. Whilst collective laissez-faire in Britain, and conciliation and arbitration in Australia both sought to secure industrial peace, these divergent traditions operated in a manner particular to their jurisdiction in constraining the evolution of a statutory unfair dismissal law. It was only when these traditions underwent severe economic, social and political challenges that they faced a crisis of legitimacy and new ideas for labour law were canvassed. Although occurring over twenty years apart, the breakdown of Britain’s and Australia’s labour law traditions saw the juridification of domestic labour law, with a central reform being the inception of a statutory right protecting against unfair dismissal. Despite emerging from divergent legal traditions and according to different timeframes, the trajectory of unfair dismissal law subsequent to its enactment was to converge upon a common theme of peeling back the statutory superstructure in favour of localised and alternative dispute resolution. Although these developments are diachronistic across the two jurisdictions, this evolutionary dynamic of divergence giving way to convergence is revealing of a high degree of path dependency as between the unfair dismissal laws of Britain and Australia.

In the UK, as in many western nations, there have been a number of progressive pieces of legislation enacted with the intent to eradicate discrimination on the basis of sexuality in the workplace. The pace and scale of acceptance of gay equality laws has been relatively rapid in recent years. To cite an example, in 2004 gay marriage was only legal in Belgium and Holland, whereas in 2013 it is legal in 11 countries (The Guardian, 2013). Up until this legislation came into force, the focus of previous research probably unsurprisingly has been predominately around two strands; sexual minorities’ experiences of discrimination in the workplace and the issue of disclosure/non-disclosure of a gay identity. There has been little exploration ‘beyond the closet’, in how gay men manage their identity post anti-discrimination laws combined with more liberal attitudes towards homosexuality. In particular, there has been a paucity of research on the ways gay men challenge, negotiate and conform in the two way process of managing their identities; this thesis aims to address this gap. Data were gathered from forty-five semi-structured in-depth interviews with self-identified gay men in a wide range of occupations and ages working in a seaside resort on the South coast of England. A qualitative methodology was used in order to obtain a deeper understanding of the ways gay men manage their gay identity in their interaction with others. Furthermore, by using reflexivity this thesis aims to show how the sample of respondents had modified and changed the ways they presented their gay identity throughout their working lives. In particular, the thesis aims to uncover critical incidents based upon their sexuality that respondents confronted in their interaction with others. The key findings that emerged from the data include; the identification of a range of strategies gay men deployed in how they managed their identity and dealt with discrimination from confrontation to conformity; the multiple constraints and opportunities that impacted upon the ways gay men both managed and disclosed their gay identity; the perceived incongruity around positions of authority, professionalism and a gay identity; and finally how silence was used as a form of exclusion creating significant barriers in the ways gay men could make themselves visible and use their voice within organisations. These findings considerably extend our understanding of the pervasiveness of heteronormativity in the workplace; the impact of contextual influences on managing a gay identity, and gay men’s experiences against a back drop of post-anti-discrimination laws in the U.K. The thesis will aid HR practitioners in giving them a better understanding of the dilemmas gay men face in their interactions with others in the workplace.

The title of this thesis is Freedom of Association and Trade Union Rights in Europe, Comparative Analysis of the ECJ and ECtHR Case Law. There are several issues that the thesis will try to shed light on. Firstly, it will identify what level of freedom of association as a trade union right is deemed acceptable at the international and European levels. At the international level the ILO and ESC standards will be looked at, while at the regional level I will research the case law of the two European Courts – CJEU and ECtHR. Secondly, the standards of the CJEU and ECtHR will be compared to each other. This way, we will know which of the two protects trade union rights better and where there might be flaws. Thirdly, after comparing the CJEU and ECtHR standards with each other, they will be compared to the international standards of the ILO and ESC. This way I will check how the regional standards are in concert with the international standards that are respected worldwide. Finally, the prospects of EU accession to the ECHR will be looked at. Here I will investigate whether the accession might affect the protection of trade union freedoms in Europe, and if so, in what way.

Qu’est-ce que réparer le préjudice en droit du travail ? L’analyse travailliste ne s’intéresse pas à la question dans son ensemble. Elle préfère s’interroger ponctuellement sur l’indemnisation du salarié protégé irrégulièrement licencié, sur l’introduction d’un barème pour les indemnités de licenciement sans cause réelle et sérieuse, sur le préjudice d’anxiété et son caractère présumé, sur le développement de l’obligation de sécurité de résultat, ou encore sur l’opportunité de créer une action de groupe. Cette étude propose, au contraire, de saisir la question de la réparation du préjudice en droit du travail de façon globale, et de l’apprécier au regard du droit civil. Plusieurs questions se posent. D’abord, qu’est-ce qu’un préjudice réparable en droit du travail ? A-t-il la même substance, les mêmes contours, qu’en droit civil ? Puisque seuls les préjudices qui répondent aux conditions posées par le droit objectif sont réparables, il faut se demander si les règles qui encadrent les rapports de travail salarié décalquent celles fixées par le droit commun de la réparation, ou y ajoutent, y retranchent, y opèrent (dis)torsion. La réflexion doit alors se poursuivre afin de savoir comment, en droit du travail, est réparé le préjudice. Si la réparation pécuniaire est souvent prononcée, son évaluation est-elle toujours en adéquation avec le préjudice « réellement subi » ? Le Code du travail a prévu diverses règles guidant l’évaluation de la réparation : plafonds, planchers et forfaits d’indemnisation. Le législateur souhaite encore en introduire, en imposant un barème d’indemnisation pour les licenciements sans cause réelle et sérieuse. N’y a-t-il pas, avec de telles instructions, le risque de s’éloigner du principe de réparation intégrale ? Dernier acte : il faut savoir à qui incombe la charge de réparer le préjudice en droit du travail ; qui en est débiteur. Qui choisir entre l’employeur, le co-employeur, l’AGS ou un fonds d’indemnisation ? Mais cette question est aussi celle de l’identification du juge de la réparation. Quel juge pour quel préjudice ? Bien qu’inspirée des mécanismes de la responsabilité civile, la réparation du préjudice en droit du travail a été adaptée à une logique de protection et de promotion du travailleur. À la recherche d’un équilibre entre cet objectif et les contraintes socio-économiques des entreprises, la réparation du préjudice en droit du travail paraît dotée de spécificités que cette thèse propose de mettre en évidence. / What is damage compensation in labour law? Labour analysis doesn’t consider the question in its entirety. It is more likely to be selectively focused on the compensation due to the improperly dismissed employee, on the submission of a dismissal award scale when the dismissal occurs without actual and serious basis, on the prejudice of anxiety and its presumed nature, on the development of the safety obligation of result, or even on the opportunity of creating a class action. On the contrary, this dissertation proposes to raise the issue of damage compensation in labour law in a global perspective and to appreciate it in view of civil law. Several questions must be clarified. At first, what is a compensable prejudice in labour law? Has it the same substance and contours as that of civil law? Since the only compensable damages are the ones meeting legal requirements, the question is to know whether the rules that frame employment relationships are tracing those of the common compensation law, or supplement, subtract, distort them. Reflection is then continuing to know how damage is compensated, in labour law especially. Monetary remedy is often pronounced in such cases. Yet, is its evaluation still in accordance with “the actual prejudice”? Diverse rules are provided in French Labour Code to help evaluating compensation: maximums, minimums and set amounts. Legislator is willing to input more of them, imposing an award scale concerning dismissals without actual and serious basis. With these instructions, isn’t there a substantial risk of pulling away the full compensation principle? Last act: it is to be known who compensate in labour law, who is its debtor. Who is to be chosen between the employer, the co-employer, the AGS (Wages Guarantee Association) or a compensation fund? The question is, as well, that of the judge of compensation’s identification. The employment contract is submitted to several judges: which one for which compensation issue? Although inspired by civil liability mechanisms, damage compensation in labour law has been adapted to an employee’s protection and promotion logic. Looking for a balance between this objective and the companies’ socio-economic constraints, damage compensation in labour law appears to have certain specificities this dissertation proposes to highlight

This thesis is a socio-legal study of the employment conditions of temporary foreign workers (TFWs) in the Saudi Arabian labour market in general and the construction sector in particular, with emphasis on low-skilled TFWs. This thesis adopts a socio-legal approach to the human rights situation of low-skilled TFWs working in the Saudi construction sector. By using migration theories, a human rights-based approach and Islamic perspectives on labour rights, the study questions the efficacy of Saudi domestic law in providing protection to low-skilled foreign workers in the construction sector. This is done by examining the current labour admission policies and the structure of the regulatory framework, including the ‘kafala’ system, recruitment procedures, employment law, working conditions, occupational safety and health hazards and access to the justice system. Grounded theory methodology is followed, with empirical data collection using semi-structured interviewing techniques in two major Saudi cities, Riyadh and Makkah. The data collected from the fieldwork provides the basis for understanding the current situation of low-skilled TFWs, by listening to their experiences. The thesis finds a link between the legal status of temporary foreign workers and the work visa system, which leads to a continuation of exploitation, mistreatment, discrimination, forced labour and the servitude of foreign labour in Saudi Arabia.

La thèse est articulée en trois chapitres. Dans le premier est analysé l'encadrement juridique de la négociation collective par le droit communautaire. L'approche suivie a pour objectif de vérifier l'utilisation par le droit communautaire de la notion d'« autonomie collective ». Si les nouveaux dispositifs du Traité de Lisbonne, reconnaissant l'autonomie des partenaires sociaux, permettent de rapprocher les systèmes européens qui connaissent telle notion, leur mise en œuvre renie une telle conclusion. La faiblesse de la négociation collective européenne a conduit les législateurs nationaux, derrière la poussée des institutions européennes, à faire face à la crise économique par l'adoption de réformes visant à atteindre l'objectif de « flexicurité ». Dans ce contexte, on peut ainsi souligner la convergence des systèmes européens de relations professionnelles sur une décentralisation vers l'entreprise, tendance clairement observée dans la comparaison franco-italienne. Le deuxième chapitre est consacré à l'évolution du système français de relations professionnelles : après sa brève reconstruction, sont analysés les instruments élaborés par le législateur afin d'encourager la négociation d'entreprise par l'introduction d'accords dérogatoires. A partir des lois Auroux, une brèche dans le traditionnel système de relations professionnelles a été ouverte, suivie par des élargissements en 2004 et 2008. Il s'agit d'une nouvelle logique de fond du système, fondée sur la possibilité d'introduire des dérogations aux conventions collectives de différents niveaux, ainsi qu'à la loi. Il s'agit de faire place au critère de subsidiarité au lieu du principe traditionnel de hiérarchie. La mise en œuvre insatisfaisante de la réforme de 2004 a poussé le législateur à intervenir à nouveau en 2008 : il supprime le critère de hiérarchie qui est remplacé par le principe de « supplétivité ». La réforme a fait de l'accord d'entreprise le nouveau centre de gravité du système, en réalisant un vrai bouleversement. La loi de 2008 a créé également une véritable refondation du droit syndical, en intervenant sur les règles de légitimité des conventions collectives ainsi que sur les critères de représentativité des syndicats, en supprimant la présomption irréfragable de représentativité. La réforme a enfin effectivement encouragé la conclusion d'accords d'entreprise, notamment en matière d'emploi. Le dernier chapitre est consacré à la négociation collective en Italie. Il retrace l'évolution du système de relations professionnelles, historiquement centralisé, et la difficile émergence de la négociation d'entreprise, en analysant les instruments élaborés par les partenaires sociaux afin d'encourager la diffusion de la négociation d'entreprise. L'instrument le plus significatif a été celui des «clauses de sortie » qui, bien que déjà pratiquées, ont été formellement reconnues par la réforme de 2009. Alors que l'accord-cadre du 22 janvier 2009 autorise des « accords spécifiques modifiant » dans des conditions assez larges, l'accord interprofessionnel du 15 avril 2009 reproduit des critères plus stricts et limite eux au niveau territorial. Le cas Fiat, qui s'est posé en dehors des nouvelles règles, a rendu nécessaire une intervention en matière de représentativité syndicale. Ce qu'a été fait par l'accord interprofessionnel du 28 juin 2011 qui fixe les critères pour mesurer la représentativité syndicale, en accueillant un principe majoritaire auquel est liée l'efficacité générale des conventions collectives. Tels critères sont confirmés par l'art. 8 de la loi n° 148/2011, qui mentionne le principe majoritaire l'étendant bien au-delà des cas prévus par l'accord interprofessionnel. L'article 8 légitime les accords modifiants au niveau de l'entreprise et du territoire (« négociation de proximité ») dans cas si larges qu'ils couvrent l'entière règlementation des rapports de travail, dérogeant aussi bien aux conventions qu'à la loi par une sorte de « délégation en blanc ». / The present dissertation work consists of 3 chapters. The first one focuses on the analysis of the role of collective bargaining within Community Law. The purpose is to assess whether it is suitable today to speak about an enhancement of “collective autonomy” within Community Law. If the new provisions of the Treaty of Lisbon, acknowledging the autonomy of social partners, allow to compare the European systems which featuring the principle of “collective autonomy”, their implementation will deny this conclusion. The weakness of collective bargaining has lead the single European systems to face the current economic crisis by adopting national reforms pursuing the objective of “flexicurity” spurred and supported by European Institutions. An alignment between different European systems of industrial relations has been observed as for the shared trend towards a decentralization of corporate contracts at company level, this particularly in the French and Italian systems. The second chapter, after a short description of the French system of relations professionnelles, will further focus on the analysis of the instruments employed by French Legislator to promote collective bargaining at company level. The lois Auroux breached the traditional system of relations professionnelles leading to a true earthquake first in 2004 and then in 2008. The point is the different way of conceiving the traditional hierarchy system of the sources with a change in the criteria ruling it, that are now identified in the principle of “subsidiarity”. The unsatisfactory implementation of the reform lead the French legislator to a new intervention in 2008. The 2008 Law reached the point of making the convention de branche suppletive and abolished the hierarchic principle making the accord d'entreprise the new cornerstone of the system. The law also completely reshaped the Trade Union Law. The reform amended the legitimacy review of collective agreements but also amended the representativeness required for trade unions completely abolishing the principle of assumption of representativeness. The 2008 Law engendering an actual promotion of the settlement of the accords d'entreprise, particularly in matter of employment. The final chapter, after a brief overview of the developments of Italian system of collective bargaining, will focus on the analysis of the instruments employed by the social partners in order to promote company agreements. The most relevant instrument has been identified in the “exit clauses” that, already used in the legal praxis, were first officially acknowledged only by the 2009 reform. The Framework-agreement of 22 January 2009 introduced the possibility of reaching “specific modifying agreements” occurring quite a wide number of conditions and cases, whereas the Interconfederal Agreement of 15 April 2009 introduced stricter criteria and limited its stipulation only to the regional local level. The “Fiat” case, first reached company agreements completely regardless of the new rules, made it urgent the need for a change of the trade union representation. On the matter, the Interconfederal Agreement of 28 June 2011 introduced the criteria of calculation of trade union representativeness on which the general effectiveness of company agreements is depending and which basically lead to the adoption of the majority principle. These criteria were re-asserted under art. 8 of law nr. 148/2011, which simply refers to a generic majority principle thus stretching the results of the agreement far beyond its original expectations. The art. 8 acknowledge the “specific modifying agreements” at the company and regional local levels (now called “proximity bargaining”) in such a great number of cases to cover the whole regulation of working relationships. Derogation is now legitimated even in respect to the law, by a “blank power of attorney” to the decentralised level.

This thesis analyses the aims and objectives of the EU Acquired Rights Directive (ARD) in the context of the larger evolution of EU labour law itself. The thesis presents the overall goal of the ARD as that of striking an appropriate balance between the employer’s prerogative to transfer the business and the employee’s interest in not having the security of the job unduly threatened by such transfers. Given the current complexity and incoherence of the law regulating economic dismissals in the context of transfers, the central argument of the thesis is that there is a need for a clearer conceptual framework for defining and understanding the rights and obligations in the Acquired Rights Directive (ARD). It is suggested that the principles of legitimate expectations and proportionality are ideally adapted to play this role. In analyzing the teleology of the ARD based on these principles, this study not only assists in understanding and explaining the ARD itself, but also has wider implications for understanding the challenges facing European social policy in the field of employment protection. In its attempts to reconcile fundamental economic freedoms of employers on the one hand, and fundamental rights of employees on the other, the Court of Justice has frequently relied upon the proportionality principle to achieve a ‘fair balance’ between both parties. Following the interpretations of ‘proportionality’ in Viking and Laval, there is admittedly a fear that the proportionality balancing is likely to accord an almost absolute priority to the employers’ economic freedoms. The thesis is cognizant of this danger, and therefore advocates a ‘symmetrical’ approach to balancing. In this way the thesis offers some insight into the potential for the ARD to remain continuously effective in times of economic crisis. The study therefore finds reason to be optimistic about the prospects for the ARD and other standard-setting directives in the future of social Europe.

This thesis examines the enduring nature of child labour on Ivory Coast’s cocoa farms. The thesis shows that the role of the state in promoting instead of inhibiting child labour practices in the Ivory Coast favours the thriving of challenging factors to any prospect of a total abolition. This thesis focuses on the influences of traditions customary practices underpinning the child labour practice. The thesis shows the adverse role of Multinational Corporations operating in Ivory Coast’s cocoa industry. This thesis shows that despite Ivory Coast being a signatory to the ILO Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour 1999 (No. 182), the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1999) as well as other regional and sub-regional legal instruments, the appropriate legal and policy response to child labour has yet to be provided. The thesis, therefore, offers the pedagogic approach as the shifting factor.

The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations were introduced in England and Wales in 2006, seeking to prohibit age discrimination in employment and vocational training. This thesis assesses whether the legislation adopted is an effective mechanism by which to address age discrimination in the workplace and achieve the dual but contradictory objectives of the European Union Framework Directive on Equal Treatment of achieving equal treatment between age cohorts whilst encouraging the active participation of older citizens in the workplace. The thesis sheds light on this hitherto unregulated suspect ground of discrimination by means of a quantitative and qualitative analysis of all employment tribunal judgments which relate to an age discrimination claim over a three and a half year period. This study shows that very few claimants were successful if their claim of age discrimination was considered by a tribunal and there was considerable inconsistency of implementation and interpretation of the legislation by individual tribunals. Employers have quickly developed defences against claims of age discrimination in order to maintain their freedom to contract and the imbalance between the two parties was particularly noticeable with claimant credibility often under scrutiny – a process claimants appeared unprepared for. Regional discrepancies were found in terms of success rates and compensation awards. A gender award gap was found in both overall compensation and injury to feelings awards, with women given smaller awards than men, whilst younger workers were given smaller awards than older workers. Legal representation made a substantial difference to success rates and compensation awards, but the majority of awards were low and many would not have covered legal costs. The low compensation awards do not provide an effective deterrent, as required by the Article 17 of the Directive. The legislation is particularly ineffective for those who claimed they had suffered multiple discrimination. Although an important first step in regulating ageist behaviour, the Regulations and the subsequent Equality Act 2010 will be unlikely to achieve the aims of the Directive as they provide little incentive for claimants to undertake the stressful process of making a claim under the legislation, which relies upon individual fault-finding.

This research aims to contribute to the analysis of the laws and regulations related to remuneration practices. It is also intends to offer recommendations and solutions to the problem of setting levels and Structures of remuneration in Saudi Arabia, an area which is currently neglected despite its importance. Remuneration is a crucial tool in solving the agency problem between shareholders and managers in public companies where the separation of ownership and control exists by providing incentives. However, in Saudi Arabia this practice shows a tendency towards high fixed remuneration and variable remuneration set without any clear links between this and performance, causing variable remuneration to become another salary. Since inadequate laws and regulation have been found to be at least partially responsible for this state of affairs, solving this problem requires careful analysis of the most important jurisdictions which have developed laws and regulations. Thus, the thesis adopts a comparative legal study of the relevant laws and regulations within a descriptive and analytical framework, presenting a detailed discussion of remuneration regulation in the UK, EU and USA. Moreover, informal discussions have been conducted with individuals in the public sectors of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) and the Capital Market Authority (CMA), in order to complement the black letter law analysis of the research, by providing a realistic insight into the nature of the challenges in formulating the policy process in Saudi Arabia. Serious flaws and shortcomings were found in the existing law and regulation regarding remuneration in Saudi Arabia, and recommendations for reform of these are provided.