One of the most neglected areas of the European integration process is the role that trade union confederations may play after the full establishment of the Economic and Monetary Union. The gradual establishment of the four freedoms enshrined in the Single European Act would require a transformation of the present strategies of trade union confederations toward more flexibility and towards the ability to take part in different levels of the European integration process. Iberian Trade Unionism highlights the emerging patterns of cooperation between national, subnational, and supranational actors and the impact on these different levels. Unlike most literature on the study of democratization and Europeanization, Iberian Trade Unionism aims to break the dominant focus on political parties and political institutions by raising awareness of the importance of interest groups such as trade union confederations in contributing to a strengthening of democratic governance. The central thesis is that both Portuguese and Spanish trade unions are becoming increasingly part of a transnational European strategy which shapes the internal organizations toward professionalism and democratization. Part 1, "Gontextualizing Iberian Trade Union Strategies," deals with the operations of both Portuguese and Spanish trade union confederations. Part 2, "The National Systems of Interest Intermediation and Trade Union Confederation Strategies," analyzes the transformation of the national systems of intermediation in the 1990s which were affected by a decline in steering power of Spanish and Portuguese political systems vis-a-vis global and European political and economic processes. Part 3, "Subnational and Transnational Policies of Iberian Trade Union Confederations," deals with policies and strategies. The last chapter treats the integration of Iberian trade union confederations in the institutions of the European Union as well as the ITUCs and is based on original research done in Madrid, Lisbon, and Brussels. This timely look at interest groups and lobbying in the European Union will appeal to scholars studying European integration and the role of interest groups in it, and to students of Spain, Portugal, or southern Europe.

One of the most neglected areas of the European integration process is the role that trade union confederations may play after the full establishment of the Economic and Monetary Union. The gradual establishment of the four freedoms enshrined in the Single European Act would require a transformation of the present strategies of trade union confederations toward more flexibility and towards the ability to take part in different levels of the European integration process. Iberian Trade Unionism highlights the emerging patterns of cooperation between national, subnational, and supranational actors and the impact on these different levels. Unlike most literature on the study of democratization and Europeanization, Iberian Trade Unionism aims to break the dominant focus on political parties and political institutions by raising awareness of the importance of interest groups such as trade union confederations in contributing to a strengthening of democratic governance. The central thesis is that both Portuguese and Spanish trade unions are becoming increasingly part of a transnational European strategy which shapes the internal organizations toward professionalism and democratization. Part 1, "Contextualizing Iberian Trade Union Strategies," deals with the operations of both Portuguese and Spanish trade union confederations. Part 2, "The National Systems of Interest Intermediation and Trade Union Confederation Strategies," analyzes the transformation of the national systems of intermediation in the 1990s which were affected by a decline in steering power of Spanish and Portuguese political systems vis-�-vis global and European political and economic processes. Part 3, "Subnational and Transnational Policies of Iberian Trade Union Confederations," deals with policies and strategies. The last chapter treats the integration of Iberian trade union confederations in the institutions of the European Union as well as the ITUCs and is based on original research done in Madrid, Lisbon, and Brussels. This timely look at interest groups and lobbying in the European Union will appeal to scholars studying European integration and the role of interest groups in it, and to students of Spain, Portugal, or southern Europe. Jos� M. Magone is a lecturer in European politics in the Department of Politics and Asian Studies, University of Hull. He was Deutsch Guest Professor at the Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin f�r Sozialforschung, and has published extensively on European politics. Among his publications are The Changing Architecture of Iberian Politics, and European Portugal: The Difficult Road to Sustainable Democracy. "Magone provides a detailed and rich description of the structures that unions face at the European level and presents a useful account of the existing attempts of unions to respond to this relatively new environment. For this reason, his book is well worth reading not only for readers interested in Iberian trade unionism, but also for those interested in the effects of European integration on unions in general."--Industrial and Labor Relations Review "A useful overview of present developments and is recommended for European economics and political science collections at the graduate and research levels." -- Choice "This book covers important and interesting ground. Its greatest contribution is empirical: It provides a wealth of information on multilevel governance structures in the EU particularly Social Europe, and a valuable overview of the evolution of trade unionism in Portugal and Spain since democratization."--Perspectives on Politics

This open access book analyses Iberian expansion by using knowledge accumulated in recent years to test some of the most important theories regarding Europe’s economic development. Adopting a comparative perspective, it considers the impact of early globalization on Iberian and Western European institutions, social development and political economies. In spite of globalization’s minor importance from the commercial perspective before 1750, this book finds its impact decisive for institutional development, political economies, and processes of state-building in Iberia and Europe. The book engages current historiographies and revindicates the need to take the concept of composite monarchies as a point of departure in order to understand the period’s economic and social developments, analysing the institutions and societies resulting from contact with Iberian peoples in America and Asia. The outcome is a study that nuances and contests an excessively-negative yet prevalent image of the Iberian societies, explores the difficult relationship between empires and globalization and opens paths for comparisons to other imperial formations.

A comprehensive introduction to the state of trade unionism in the world today. Leading labour scholars discuss the health of the trade union movement, the present political and economic climate for trade union advancement, the dominant revitalisation strategies, and future prospects for each nation.

"After decades of isolation and a turbulent transition to democracy, Portugal's integration into the European Union has given political, economic, social, and cultural stability to a country that had to overcome the trauma of losing an empire. This volume clearly is a major contribution to the study of how Portugal became part of the European Union as a political system and its development towards Europeanization and domestication.Magone first lays a theoretical framework for the study of Europeanization and discusses political parties, the political system, and Portuguese society in terms of Europeanization. He then examines public administration, how the European Union and the OECD impacted on the modernization agenda, and includes a discussion of the national EU policy coordination. Magone also considers the Portuguese Euro-elite and how they interacted with the Portuguese presidency and the processes of decision-making going on among the different levels of the governance system of the European Union. He highlights a case study of the Portuguese presidency of the European Union, which took place in the first half of 2003. In addition, Magone discusses the impact of the EU structural funds on Portugal, and scrutinizes Portuguese foreign and defense policies, in particular its reconstructed foreign policy, which was clearly instrumental in achieving the independence of East Timor. He reviews the growing integration of Portugal into the emerging structures of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), concluding with the challenges that Portugal will face in the future in the education, health, and business sectors.An interesting finding is the growing alienation of the population from the political class, who clearly make all the decisions in relation to the European Union without proper consultation of the population through referenda. In sum, this book is vital to understand one of the oldest nation-states of the world.JosÚ M. Magone is senior lecturer"

The Oxford Handbook of Portuguese Politics brings together the best scholars in the field offering an unrivalled coverage of the politics (broadly defined) of the country over the past 50 years. The Handbook includes eight sections. First, it looks at the past and present by making an overview of Portuguese political developments since democratization in the 1970s. Second, it looks at political institutions as the building blocks of Portuguese democracy. The third section examines mass politics and voters, that is, a thorough analysis of the demand-side of mass politics. The fourth section turns to the supply side of mass-politics by looking at parties and the party system. The fifth section looks at the Portuguese society by unpacking a plethora of societal aspects with direct implications for politics. The sixth section examines governance and public policies, with a view to understanding how a constellation of public policies has an impact on the quality of governance and in fostering well-being. The seventh section looks at Portugal and the European Union. The eighth and final section unpacks Portuguese foreign policy and defence.

European integration has profoundly changed the relationship between national and subnational governments and has led to the emergence of the Europe of the Regions. This edited volume highlights some of the problems involved in the integration of the three main levels of governance in the European Union: the regional, national, and supranational level. The contributors address recent developments in various regions and examine the way these regions have adjusted to the growing importance of the European Union's multilevel governance system. Among the issues discussed are the emergence and institutionalization of new regional political systems, such as those of Scotland, Wales, and Flanders; the channels available to the regions for influencing the EU policy process in relation to their constituencies; and horizontal projects of integration among regions, which make the whole multilevel governance system more flexible as well as more complex.