In the past decades, European labour markets have undergone profound changes, witnessing a process of liberalisation and flexibilisation, in part through the spread of various forms of atypical employment. These new forms of employment have been argued to be of generally lower quality than standard employment, presenting several disadvantages across a range of employment-related dimensions. Nevertheless, the disadvantages experienced by atypical workers are argued to differ depending on nationally specific institutional settings, as employment regulations, welfare institutions and collective representation are commonly claimed to play a significant role in the shaping of disadvantage. Within the field of comparative political economy, a literature has emerged dealing with issues of dualisation and insider-outsider divides associated with these new forms of employment, mainly focusing on institutional divides in employment and welfare protection and political representation between standard and atypical workers and their consequences in terms of social inequalities. Authors within this literature have argued divides to be different across groups of countries within Europe. Specifically, an important distinction has been claimed to exist between Liberal countries, where divides are argued to be limited, and Southern European countries, where they are said to be among the highest. But this literature has mostly considered disadvantages from an institutional perspective, without empirically investigating whether institutional divides actually translate into individual disadvantages. At the same time, within sociology, authors have investigated individual disadvantages experienced by atypical workers under the broad concept of precariousness. Nevertheless, these scholars have not provided a systematic analysis of the relation between different institutional frameworks and individual disadvantages. This thesis aims at partly bridging these two literatures, by providing an analysis of how different institutional settings impact on disadvantages as experienced at the individual level. To do this, this thesis explores the disadvantages experienced by a specific category of atypical workers, namely temporary agency workers. It focuses on two countries which have been argued to present very different institutional divides across a broad range of employment-related dimensions. The UK is seen as the main example of Liberal country in the European context, providing limited employment protection to all workers, a fragmented system of industrial relations and a social protection system mainly based on means-testing and mostly aimed at poverty prevention. In contrast, Italy has been considered one of the European countries with the most highly segmented labour market, with high employment protection for core workers but very little for workers at the margin. At the same time, both its industrial relations system and it social protection system are said to strongly discriminate against people in atypical forms of employment. These claims are explored through semi-structured interviews with temporary agency workers in the service sector, trade unionists and other relevant stakeholders involved in atypical employment. The study demonstrates that temporary agency workers in the two countries experience partly different disadvantages. Although differences in the institutional settings can be said to contribute to explaining these differences, the analysis reveals a more complex picture. I show that institutional divides do not necessarily translate into individual disadvantages, as they interact among each other and with other factors in moulding individual experiences in a variety of ways. At the same time, individual disadvantages are present even when no institutional divide exists. Thus, the study argues that considering disadvantages only in terms of institutional divides oversimplifies a more complex and varied reality, and calls for more attention to be paid to how institutional divides are translated into individual disadvantages.

This essay is about flexibility in relation to employment protection through a gender perspective. It handles the regulations of fixed term employments and how they are regulated in collective agreements in different sectors. The sectors studied are chosen by statistics on male- and female dominated sectors to apply a gender perspective. 90 percent of Swedish workers are covered by collective agreements and many of the studied agreements differ markedly from both the regulation in the Swedish law and from each other. The study shows that depending on which sector you are working in your employment protection will differ. Especially in female dominated sectors the regulations of fixed term employments are even more flexible than the law and the regulations in male dominated sectors. According to the gender structure of the labor market, women have lower status, which could be an explanation to why the regulations tend to be less favorable for women. The result of the study shows that collective agreements in female dominated sectors tend to have regulations according to the Swedish law or less favorable than the law. The male dominated sectors on the other hand tend to have collective agreements that are stricter regulated than the law when it comes to the area of fixed term employments. By that said the regulations of fixed term employments seem through a gender perspective be better for men than for women.

Since the employment protection legislation inquiry En modern arbetsrätt was published, thedebate on employment protection has gained momentum. The inquiry has had to resistcriticism, among other things for not strengthening the balance between employers andemployees. A general review of the research used in the inquiry shows that sociologicalresearch has been used to a relatively small extent, in favor of research of a more economicnature. This entails a risk that valuable sociological aspects linked to employment may havebeen overlooked or underestimated. With the study, we intend to highlight the sociologicalaspect of the issue of temporary employment and employment protection to broaden thediscussion. In our study, we examine the research that the inquiry is based on regarding thesociological part of temporary employment and compare it with a literature review weproduce about temporary employment. This study shows that the sociological aspect of theEPL inquiry is underemphasized and that there are other studies that highlight valuablesociological points that are not included in the inquiry. In the comparison between theinquiry's research and our literature review, it is in particular the employee perspective andthe connection between temporary employment and health that differ where our sourceshighlight these aspects in a significantly clearer way. / Sedan utredningen En modern arbetsrätt publicerades har debatten om anställningsskydd tagit fart. Utredningen har fått motstå kritik, bland annat för att inte stärka balansen mellan arbetsgivare och arbetstagare. En översiktlig genomgång av den forskning som använts i utredningen visar att sociologisk forskning använts i relativt liten utsträckning, till förmån för forskning av mer ekonomisk karaktär, såsom nationalekonomisk forskning. Detta innebär en risk för att värdefulla sociologiska aspekter kopplat till anställningar kan ha förbisetts eller underskattats. Med studien avser vi att lyfta den sociologiska aspekten i frågan om visstidsanställningar och anställningsskydd för att bredda diskussionen. I vår studie undersöker vi forskningen som utredningen utgått från gällande den sociologiska delen om visstidsanställningar och jämför med en litteraturöversikt vi tar fram. Denna studie visar att den sociologiska aspekten i las-utredningen är underbetonad och att det finns andra studier som lyfter värdefulla sociologiska poänger som inte finns med i utredningen. I jämförelsen mellan utredningens forskning och vår litteraturöversikt är det i synnerhet arbetstagarperspektivet och kopplingen mellan visstidsanställningar och hälsa som skiljer sig där våra källor lyfter dessa aspekter på ett klart tydligare sätt.

This paper examines how a reduction in EPL affects the utility of older workers, by changing the probability of re-employment as well as the risk of becoming unemployed. I generalize the Bailey-Chetty framework and make a one-period model that shows maximizing search behavior of the agent. With data from previous studies, and Swedish authorities, the model is calibrated. The results show predominant negative welfare effects. When the re-employment probability increases more than the risk of becoming unemployed decreases, one will need to increase the compensation less compared to when the risk of becoming unemployed increases more than the re-employment probability. The result also exclusively shows that the current social security fund is too generous and had to be reduced to reach an optimal level. On the other hand, the social security fund is more optimal when the probability of re-employment increases more than the risk of becoming unemployed. Furthermore, the results show that younger workers have a worse welfare from the unemployment insurance fund compared to older workers.

The subject of this study is transfer of undertakings and employment protection in cases of outsourcing. The aim of the study is to examine how the Swedish law in the area relates to the EU law. This is done by comparing the Swedish case law of Arbetsdomstolen to the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union and by critically reviewing the case law of Arbetsdomstolen from a gender perspective. The method used for this study is a doctrinal research method. This is supplemented with a social science perspective. Cases of outsourcing are often complex and have given rise to a lot of case law from both the Court of Justice of the EU and Arbetsdomstolen. Arbetsdomstolen has furthermore been subject to criticism for interpreting the EU directive too independently and for being too employer friendly. The results of the study show that Arbetsdomstolens assessments are different from the Court of Justice of the EU assessments in some aspects. Both courts, but Arbetsdomstolen in particular, distinguishes between undertakings that are based on material assets and undertakings that are based on personnel assets. Case law shows that a transfer of undertaking is more likely to occur when it concerns an undertaking based on material assets. This means that Arbetsdomstolens assessments are unfavorable for employees working in undertakings based on personnel. The conclusion is therefore that, since the Swedish labor market is gender segregated, the employment protection is stronger for men than for women.

Today, the temporary agency work is a well-established industry in the Swedish labour market. The industry has grown every year since the start 1992 and seemingly, the legislation has not kept up with its’ pace. The reason behind the growth of temporary agency work is their clients impulsion for flexibility as well as making their organisation more efficient. Employers organizations argue that the ability to be flexible is a tool to increase economic growth in the society while the unions argue that the temporary agency workers are paying the price with insecure employment-contracts. The line between cancelation of employment due to redundancy and dismissal due to personal reasons is unclear, with disadvantages to the employment protection, through this triangular relationship between the temporary agency work, user company and the employee. The question is if the goal justifies the means. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate how the temporary agency work-industry is affecting the temporary agency workers employment protection, in addition, the thesis will investigate which legal impacts the legislation is creating in a diversity perspective. In order to answer the research questions properly, a traditional legal dogmatic method has been used as well as legal sociological perspective.

Temporary agencies are commonly used by Swedish companies today, and according to Coe, Johns and Ward (2009), this is because Sweden has a strict labor market regulation which makes companies afraid to employ workers on a permanent basis. By using temporary agencies, companies can come around the Employment Protection Act (EPA) which makes us question which parts of the EPA that companies consider as a problem and if the use of temporary agencies actually can reduce this problem for Swedish companies. Focus in this thesis is companies´ personnel costs, which means that the EPA and the use of temporary agencies are investigated with these costs in mind. Therefore, the purpose with this thesis is to investigate how the EPA affects Swedish companies’ personnel costs over the years 2007-2009, and examine if the use of temporary agencies can reduce these costs. A descriptive investigation is conducted in order to examine the purpose of this thesis. The study is accomplished through an Internet based questionnaire which is send to 68 randomly chosen companies all over Sweden, with 51-150 workers from no specific branch or geographical area. 32 companies participate in the study. From the descriptive investigation it is evident that the EPA has increased personnel costs for Swedish companies over the years 2007-2009. However, this happens indirectly through decreased flexibility making it difficult for companies to quickly adjust to changes in demand. Also, a majority of the companies are critical towards the EPA and show direct consequences’ of negative impacts experienced. Consequently, we suggest that the EPA is updated to fit the conditions of today´s labor market. Furthermore, temporary agencies reduce companies’ personnel costs by enabling them to hire workers and avoid costs as employment benefits and costs for absenteeism. However, the direct costs of temporary workers are higher than the direct cost for permanent workers. Therefore, we suggest that the use of temporary agencies should not be used instead of permanent employments but mainly in situations of escalating demand when greater flexibility is needed. Finally, the costs for permanent workers are reported in account category 7 “personnel costs, depreciation etcetera” and the costs for temporary workers are reported in account categories 5-6 “other external operating expenses” in the income statement. However, both these account categories are included in the same main category of costs. This means that the only difference in the income statement is due to the higher cost of temporary workers. Besides this, companies´ accounting is not affected.

<p>Temporary agencies are commonly used by Swedish companies today, and according to Coe, Johns and Ward (2009), this is because Sweden has a strict labor market regulation which makes companies afraid to employ workers on a permanent basis. By using temporary agencies, companies can come around the Employment Protection Act (EPA) which makes us question which parts of the EPA that companies consider as a problem and if the use of temporary agencies actually can reduce this problem for Swedish companies. Focus in this thesis is companies´ personnel costs, which means that the EPA and the use of temporary agencies are investigated with these costs in mind.</p><p><em>Therefore, the purpose with this thesis is to investigate how the EPA affects Swedish companies’ personnel costs over the years 2007-2009, and examine if the use of temporary agencies can reduce these costs.</em></p><p>A descriptive investigation is conducted in order to examine the purpose of this thesis. The study is accomplished through an Internet based questionnaire which is send to 68 randomly chosen companies all over Sweden, with 51-150 workers from no specific branch or geographical area. 32 companies participate in the study.<strong></strong></p><p>From the descriptive investigation it is evident that the EPA has increased personnel costs for Swedish companies over the years 2007-2009. However, this happens indirectly through decreased flexibility making it difficult for companies to quickly adjust to changes in demand. Also, a majority of the companies are critical towards the EPA and show direct consequences’ of negative impacts experienced. Consequently, we suggest that the EPA is updated to fit the conditions of today´s labor market. Furthermore, temporary agencies reduce companies’ personnel costs by enabling them to hire workers and avoid costs as employment benefits and costs for absenteeism. However, the direct costs of temporary workers are higher than the direct cost for permanent workers. Therefore, we suggest that the use of temporary agencies should not be used instead of permanent employments but mainly in situations of escalating demand when greater flexibility is needed. Finally, the costs for permanent workers are reported in account category 7 “personnel costs, depreciation etcetera” and the costs for temporary workers are reported in account categories 5-6 “other external operating expenses” in the income statement. However, both these account categories are included in the same main category of costs. This means that the only difference in the income statement is due to the higher cost of temporary workers. Besides this, companies´ accounting is not affected.</p>

Cette thèse s’inscrit dans la démarche de l’Économie du bien-être au sens où elle répond au double enjeu qui guide cette discipline, à savoir faire des mesures de bien-être subjectif des sujets d’analyse en soi et des outils visant à améliorer l’analyse économique. La première partie de cette thèse explore l’interaction existant entre temps de travail au sein des couples et le bien-être subjectif. Le Chapitre 1 démontre qu’être simultanément sur-employés peut avoir un effet positif sur le bien-être des deux membres du couple. Le Chapitre 2 démontre que les femmes travaillant plus que leurs maris subissent des baisses de bien-être. Ce Chapitre présente une posture nouvelle dans la littérature au sens où il prouve que cette baisse de bien-être ne semble pas imputable aux normes de genre mais à l’absence de justice dans la distribution des tâches au sein du ménage. La seconde partie de cette thèse adopte une posture différente au sens où le bien-être subjectif y devient un outil permettant l’évaluation de politiques du marché du travail. Le Chapitre 3 démontre que les réductions du temps de travail implantées en France et au Portugal à la fin des années 1990 ont amélioré en moyenne la satisfaction des travailleurs vis-à-vis de leur emploi et de leur temps de loisir. Le Chapitre 4 évalue l’effet direct et les externalités causés par la hausse de la contribution Delalande en France en 1999. Cette contribution visait à protéger l’emploi des seniors. Ainsi, l’augmentation de cette contribution a augmenté la perception de sécurité des seniors concernés mais ceci s’est fait aux détriments de leurs plus jeunes collègues, qui ont vu leur perception de sécurité de l’emploi diminuer. / The present thesis contributes to the literature by exploring how relative working time within households and changes in legal norms on the labour market are linked to subjective wellbeing. Bydoing so, this thesis matches the objectives of the Economics of Wellbeing in that it both considers subjective wellbeing as a subject of study per se and a tool for economic analyses. The first part ofthis thesis examines how relative working time in household affects subjective wellbeing. Chapter 1 demonstrates that being simultaneously overemployed may translate into higher wellbeing of both couple members. Chapter 2 shows that women working more than their husbands are likely to experience wellbeing losses. However, this Chapter is innovative in that it demonstrates that these losses in utility are not caused by violation of gender norms but because of the unfairness of the time allocation within household. The second part of this thesis adopts a different perspective sinceit takes subjective wellbeing as a tool to perform welfare analysis of labor market reforms. Chapter3 estimates the impact of working time reductions implemented in Portugal and France at the end ofthe 1990’s and concludes that workers experienced increases in job and leisure satisfaction. Chapter4 evaluates the impact of the increase in the Delalande tax in 1999. This tax aimed at keeping older workers in the labor force. Then, this Chapter shows that perceived job security of older workers increased thanks to the higher Delalande tax but this has been done at the cost of lower perceived job security of their younger colleagues.

The main research question that this study intends to answer is: "What power relations between the parties of the labour market can be found in the contemporary discourse on a modernization of the labour law?". The purpose is to expose in what way an unequal power relationship be- tween employers and employees is maintained and reproduced through problem representation in policy documents, using discourse analysis applied to the referral statements from Svenskt Näringsliv (confederation of Swedish enterprise) and Landsorganisationen i Sverige - LO (the national unions organization in Sweden) to the government inquiry into a modernized labour law, and thus add arguments in the continued debate on labour law, and contribute puzzle pieces to the larger whole, whose purpose is to uncover hidden power relations that affect the Swedish labour market in general. The study is expected to concretize these power structures with the help of Steven Luke's theories from “Power: A Radical View” and through Carol Bacchi's anal- ysis tool "What's the problem represented to be" approach.The results show that the power relationship between Svenskt Näringsliv and LO is primarily characterized by a struggle for hegemony and over the members 'and the public's image of which values should weigh most heavily in the issue of labour law and the parties' roles in the labour market. The struggle for the hegemonic takeover and the influence over the members' preferences is more tangible than the power the parties possess and exercise towards each other.