由於社會經濟以及國際情勢的變遷，甚至無預警的採取關廠或歇業之情況屢見不鮮，導致勞工之生存權、工作權遭受到嚴重危害；同時現行的勞動法制保護不足，遂有「大量解僱勞工保護法」之制定。 本篇論文係以「大量解僱勞工保護法」為研究之對象。其論述之焦點集中於大量解僱勞工保護法之法律爭議問題，乃針對現行大量解僱勞工保護法法本身之規範內容，係以大量解僱之定義、解僱計畫書及通知義務、協商之時程及方式、提供就業輔導與再僱用優先權利、預警通報義務、以及限制出境之處分為研究之重點。除此之外，本文更藉由他山之石可以攻錯為之論述，比較研究我國與美國、德國、以及日本有關大量解僱保護法制，以供我國參考借鏡。 最後，法律的建構與運用，總是要求能夠越精確、越具體，而盡量避免空洞、歧異與含混為目標，否則喪失穩定性，各種因理解差異的衝突自然增加。本研究發現：其一，我國大量解僱勞工保護法之內容，其定義規範、法條的嚴謹性實在過於簡陋，協商程序過於簡單，且權利義務不明，致使大量解僱勞工保護法之執行與現況產生落差，導致象徵性意味大於實質效用。其二，本研究發現大量解僱事件中之勞工確實相較於一般解僱事件之勞工，受到更多程序及實體性規範之保障。本文認為實應一體地規範於一般性之個別解僱範圍中，以玆給予更周延之勞工保護。 / Because of the transformation of social economy status and international situation, and unnoticed closed-down and shutdown of businesses come up in everyday life, labors’ rights to live and work are endangered harshly. In addition, relevant provisions in labor laws are insufficient to protect such workers. For this reason, the ‘Protective Act for Mass Redundancy of Employees’ was promulgated. This dissertation focuses mainly on the debates of the ‘Protective Act for Mass Redundancy of Employees’. Among the controversies, we especially concentrate on the definition of ‘Mass Redundancy’, layoff project report and notice obligation, processes and means of negotiation between labor and capital, provisions of employment service and preferential right of re-employment, consulting systems, and disciplinary restrictions of exit permission. Besides, we attempt to acquire some useful experiences from comparative studies in related institutions in US, Germany, Japan and Taiwan. Eventually, it deserves to be mentioned, the conflicts of misunderstanding and instability may result from the inaccuracy and incoherence of the regulations, and the emptiness and divergence of its goals. Accordingly, we found that, for one thing, its regulations, definitions and precision are far too crude. Furthermore, the consulting procedures are simple and obligations are equivocal, and may lead to a gap between imagination and reality. In this way, the Act will be nothing but a slogan. For another thing, indeed, we found the labors that suffer from mass redundancy receive much more attention than those who are laid off in normal cases. We should point out, however, all should the government do is to focus on not only those who suffer from mass redundancy, but also reach workers in normal cases. Only in this way, labors would be well protected and regulations could be completed.

Emerging trends in the re-inhabitation of central cities and government funding of numerous financial incentives have succeeded in making brownfield redevelopment a far more lucrative opportunity for developers over the past decade. However, the redevelopment process itself remains virtually unchanged, maintaining a narrow focus on environmental remediation, site engineering, and short-term market demand. Land use, instead of design, drives the entire process. This approach fails to sustain development and recognize larger redevelopment opportunities based on local and regional context. Despite an increasing amount of public money used to fund incentives, development continues to overlook potential positive externalities presumably to avert risk and increase feasibility. The purpose of this thesis is to re-examine brownfield redevelopment from the perspective of urban design in order to define ways in which design might offer solutions to these shortcomings and play a more critical role in future redevelopments. Using case studies of past redevelopments of former auto plant sites, Landscape Urbanism in brownfield redevelopment, and design proposals for auto plant sites from the GM and Ford closings of 2005-2006, the thesis investigates three primary questions. First, what is the conventional brownfield redevelopment process, to what extent has urban design been involved, and what are the major issues and lessons that can be learned? Secondly, what examples of brownfield redevelopment have integrated urban design to addresses these issues and what are the specific principles that inform design? Finally, how can urban design strategies, based on principles of Landscape Urbanism, lead the redevelopment of brownfield sites?

Nedläggningar är en återkommande företeelse på den svenska arbetsmarknaden. I föreliggande avhandling av Alexis Rydell ligger fokus på relationerna mellan ledning och arbetstagarorganisationer under nedläggningsprocesser.   Ett nedläggningsbeslut skapar spänning mellan parterna, inte minst eftersom nedläggnings­beslutet ofta innebär negativa konsekvenser för de anställda. Avhandlingen visar hur olika förhållningssätt mellan parterna kan skapa olika förutsättningar för att reducera spänningen och mildra de negativa konsekvenserna. Utifrån fallstudier identifieras nyckelfaktorer för partssamverkan och hur konstruktiva lösningar kan möjliggöras under processen. Dessutom analyseras vilka kontextuella faktorer som påverkar processen och dess potentiella inverkan på utfallen. Avslutningsvis presenteras ett förslag till modell för partsrelationer i nedläggningar. / The main topic of this thesis is union-management relations during plant closures. The thesis includes five papers. The first paper is based on a case study that illustrates how management and unions can exchange numerical flexibility with social responsibility to create favorable solutions. This is called a “local flexicurity model in restructuring processes.” The second paper is based on multiple case studies and stresses the importance of longer transition periods that include active Human Resource Management (HRM) efforts toward the local community, which are labeled as “outreach HRM.” The benefit of a longer transition period is that it gives employees, unions and local communities time to plan activities that may mitigate the adverse effects of the closure. The third paper addresses the dynamics of the local labor market and jobseekers’ willingness to commute to work, showing how socio-economic factors affect an individual’s willingness to commute. This implies that socio-economic factors may affect the ability to reconnect to new employment. The fourth paper is based on two case studies. It develops a typology of patterns in union-management relations, which is described as coordination and separation, and it reveals five key factors that contribute to creating the different patterns. It also shows how tension between management and labor can be reduced. The fifth paper is an international comparative study of Sweden and Australia. The paper deals with institutional differences with regard to how mass redundancies and plant closures are handled. Regulations that facilitate the voice of the union and employees are critically examined and illustrated through cases from both countries. Partly based on the five papers, the thesis proposes a model that addresses union-management relations in plant closures. The model takes context, process and outcomes into account. Finally, it discusses recommendations for further research.