Suchergebnisse

In the 1980s and, in particular, in the 1990s the countries of the European Union experienced divergent developments of gross fixed capital formation. Estimating an investment function for a panel of ten countries and analyzing the paths of the determinants of investment in the countries under consideration reveals that the different development of final demand is the main factor responsible for the divergences in investment. Other factors are disparities in the decline of real interest rates and of relative prices for capital goods.

Kuşkusuz; gelişmiş ülkelerde daha fazla kişisel isteklerin karşılanması arzusunun artmasıyla birlikte, kısmi süreli hizmet sözleşmelerinin sağladığı esneklik bireylere çekici gelmektedir. Unutulmamalıdır ki, kısmi süreli hizmet sözleşmelerinin çoğalması, genel olarak nüfus yapısı yada ülkelerin ekonomik ve teknolojik gelişmişlik dereceleri ile yakından ilgiliyse de ki bu özellikler ayrıca genel olarak bir ülkede yeni oluşacak iş alanlarının sayısını ve niteliklerini de etkiler. Bunların yanında; kısmi süreli hizmet sözleşmelerindeki artış, toplumun farklı statülerde çalışanlar ve nüfus gruplarına yönelik istihdam politikalarına sahip olmasına ve bunlara ek olarak bir bütün olarak; bireye koşulsuz çalışma hakkını tanıması, iş güvencesi gibi kişinin hayatın her kademesine entegrasyonunu sağlamasına yönelik, bireylerin hiçbir ayrımcılığa uğramaksızın kullanabilecekleri türden prensiplere sahip olması ile de yakından ilgilidir. Ayrımcılığın önlenmesi ve kısmi süreli hizmet sözleşmesi ile çalışanların korunmasına yönelik önemli adımlar hem bölgesel hem de evrensel boyutta atılmıştır. Uluslararası Çalışma Örgütünün 1994 tarihli 175 sayılı sözleşmesi ve 182 sayılı tavsiye kararı, bu tür girişimlere örnek gösterilebilir ki bunlar özellikle atipik çalışma biçimlerini konu alan ilk UÇÖ belgeleri olarak ayrı bir öneme sahiptirler. Ardından A.B. düzeyinde 6 Haziran 1997 tarihinde; Sosyal Taraflar, Kısmi Süreli Hizmet Sözleşmelerine Yönelik Bir Çerçeve Anlaşma imzalamışlardır. Daha sonra 15 Aralık 1997'de bu anlaşma A.B. Konseyi tarafından direktif haline getirilmiştir. Çerçeve anlaşma; ayrımcılığı önlemek maksadıyla, kısmi süreli hizmet sözleşmesi ile çalışanların çalışma koşullarına ilişkin genel prensipleri ve minimum gereklilikleri belirleme gayesi güder. Anlaşma, A.B. hukukunda ilk kez, kısmi çalışanlar ile tam gün çalışanlara eşit davranılması ilkesini ve ayrımcılık yasağına ilişkin prensipleri getirmiştir. There is no doubt that the flexibility provided by part-time work arrangements is attractive in industrial countries where the desire for greater freedom of individual choice is constantly growing. It must be recognised, however, that any increase in part-time employment will mainly depend on population trends, on economic and technological progress which determine the number and nature of the jobs to be filled, on employment policies in regard to the different classes of workers and population groups, and on the degree to which society as a whole accepts the principles of the right to work, job security and full participation in all spheres of life, both public and private, without discrimination of any kind. To avoid discrimination and protection of part-time employees, vital steps have been taken. Firstly, at the international level Convention (No. 175) and Recommendation (No. 182) on Part-time Work 1994, which are the first ILO instruments specifically dealing with an "atypical" form of work must be recognized. And after on 6 June 1997, the Social Partners signed the European Framework Agreement on Part-time Work. This agreement was transposed into European legislation by the Council Directive 97/81 EC of 15 December 1997. The framework agreement lays down the general principles and minimum requirements relating to the employment conditions of part-time workers so as to eliminate discrimination. The agreement establishes, for the first time in EU law, the principle of non-discrimination and equal treatment for part-time employees in relation to their full-time counterparts.

Methods: Sickness absence was measured by questionnaire using the Third European Survey on Working Conditions. Employees were considered to have sickness absence if they reported to be absent at least one day in the past 12 months because of an accident at work, work related problems, or by other health problems.

Triptans are presently a milestone in the treatment of migraine patients. Because of their effectiveness and safety, they have radically improved migraine treatment but their use has meant a substantial increase in spending for medicines. We thus compared retail prices of triptans in eight European Union member states to establish the existence and the amount of price differentials. We found wide price differentials between countries (from 83% to 140%) and within countries, where they attained 191% in Belgium. The least and most expensive products differed from country to country. These differentials mean that the most cost-effective triptans differ from country to country and this can be an important source of variation in the treatment of migraineurs. A better-harmonised European system of pricing could limit these unethical variations.

This paper examines the development of fiscal rules and budget procedures in EU countries, and their impact of public finances since the mid-1980s. It presents a new data set on institutional reforms and their impact in Europe. Empirical pattern confirm our prediction that more stringent fiscal rules exist under large coalition governments, while the centralisation of budgetary procedures is the main form of fiscal governance elsewhere. In addition, the centralisation of procedures does not restrain public debt in countries more prone to a rules-based approach, whereas more stringent fiscal rules seem to support fiscal discipline in almost all EU countries.

The empirical literature on the growth impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) suggests a strong positive relationship between the two. Yet, the lack of evidence of a clear causality from FDI to growth impedes our ability to firmly conclude that FDI inflows are a driver and not just a consequence of higher economic growth. Just as a higher return on investment typically attracts more fixed investment, it should be no surprise that it also attracts more foreign investors. Having said that, we need to acknowledge that the difficulty of finding unambiguous evidence of causality from FDI to growth does not refute the notion that such a relationship nevertheless exists. As the growth literature suggests, many different factors combine to create an environment conducive to higher economic growth. Proper policies and institutions have been found to be particularly important over longer periods of time. In this context, we need to view FDI from a broader perspective than its direct and immediate impact on growth itself. Could it not be the case, for example, that foreign investors are more demanding than indigenous firms as regards a stable and favourable policy environment, good infrastructure and an appropriate human capital stock? If governments introduce policies and create institutions with the purpose of attracting FDI, they may create an environment more generally favourable to growth even though some of this growth is not the result of FDI per se. The evidence is stronger that FDI has been boosting growth directly in Central and Eastern European countries (CEE) than in the 15 countries of the European Union (EU-15). The reason, as we have argued, is that while these countries needed to bridge the technology gap to the more advanced countries, they nevertheless met some key conditions - especially in terms of human capital - which helped them bridge this gap more quickly with the help of FDI. In addition, the sheer magnitude of net FDI inflows helped sustain a higher level of domestic investment than would have been possible on the basis of domestic saving and debt-creating capital inflows alone. While FDI is expected to continue to contribute to economic growth in the CEE countries that have joined the EU, it is less clear whether the economic gains from FDI will be as high as during the transition from plan to market. The more the new EU members come to resemble EU-15 countries in terms of inward FDI stocks as a share of GDP, productivity, efficiency and level of technology, the less likely it is that FDI will have a positive influence on economic growth beyond what is observed in more advanced market economies. That said, FDI and the associated activities of transnational corporations will undoubtedly remain an important welfare-enhancing force - both inside and outside an enlarged European Union.