Social models are always contested and ambiguous. This is particularly evident in the field of human resources management, where decisions that ultimately affect the patterns of social relations are made every day. This collection of in-depth essays focuses on some central human resources elements – gender, youth, ageing, educational background, training, workers’ rights – providing an up-to-date summary and analysis of how employers are dealing – and should be dealing – with workforce characteristics under current globalized forces. The emphasis is on Europe, but valuable insights come also from Chile, Canada, and the United States. Sixteen experts discuss such important issues as the following: the shift from intervention in favour of workers’ rights towards corporate neo-liberal policies; importance of transnational framework agreements in countries where a trade union; tradition is lacking; evidence that provision of childcare promotes female labour market participation; short-time working, labour hoarding, and labour underutilization; enhancing training policies for employable skills; enforcement of corporate social responsibility; alarmingly high rates of precarious employment; worldwide decline of full-time permanent positions; pension system reform; over-exposure of young people to non-standard employment; discouraged workers; regional imbalances in employment policy; and weaknesses of education programmes in connection with the world of work. Industrial relations and human resources professionals as well as employment lawyers worldwide will welcome this incisive analysis, and academics everywhere are sure to benefit from its evidence, insights, and proposals. The book presents a selection of papers from the international conference in commemoration of Marco Biagi entitled Europe 2020: Comparative Perspectives and Transnational Action, held at the Marco Biagi Foundation in Modena, Italy. 17–19 March 2011.

Individual Differences in Imaging contains several suggestions for research and how it can be conducted. This book is useful for people with an interest in the nature and functions of mental imagery.

This book breaks new ground in human resource management through focusing on specific themes written by a range of European experts drawing on a common survey. As such it is a major progression from previous texts that lack a coherent, cross-national database. Representing a truly collaborative European project, it includes themes such as flexibility, training and development, industrial relations, regional aspects and the problems of organising and undertaking comparative human resource management research.

Breaking new ground and drawing on contributions from the leading academics in the field, this volume in the Global HRM Series specifically focuses on industrial relations.

The European Union is expanding. Wide cultural, political and economic differences within the Union have a significant impact on the management of human resources, so crucial to the success of any enterprise. Businesses within the EU have regularly tried to re-evaluate the context in which they work, and for investors from other continents, no

This textbook offers an integrated introduction to the strategic, organizational, human resource and industrial relations issues posed by internationalization. Outlining the consequences of internationalization for management generally, and for human resource policy and practice in particular, the book encourages students to develop their understanding of the processes involved and to formulate their own strategic solutions. Four major areas are covered: the changing international context of contemporary business and its implications for general company strategies and for human resource strategy; national differences in human resource management and their effects on organizational and personnel policy in multinational corpo