НЕОЛИБЕРАЛИЗАМ И ФЛЕKСИБИЛИЗАЦИЈА ТРЖИШТА РАДА

Abstract

Political, economic and social changes after the 1980’s that are viewed as a result of the development of neoliberal doctrine and the implementation of neoliberal policies represent the focus of this paper. Neoliberal doctrine highlights the importance of freedom, i.e., liberating society from state interventionism which is characteristic of not only socialist, but also of the Keynesian doctrine. By introducing these conceptual premises, neoliberal doctrine paved the way for the implementation of neoliberal policies, which usually implies the abolition of state regulation of economic activities, the privatization of public companies, trade liberalization, the reduction of budget expenditure and the welfare state. Pointing to the changes in the labour market which are influenced by the neoliberal turning point is the main aim of this paper. Neoliberal protocol implied significant institutional reforms in the form of reducing the protectiveness of labour legislature and promoting greater dynamism of the labour market, while neoliberalization of the labour market mostly referred to demands for deregulation and flexibilization of the labour market (demands may or may not be interconnected). The above-mentioned initiatives are not solely a result of the neoliberal point of view that the existing legal provisions protect workers too much or treat certain groups of workers unjustly, but these provisions also have a detrimental impact on economic production, thus preventing employers from adapting fast enough to external changes. As a result of demands for increasing economic competitiveness, deregulation and flexibilization have become preferred methods through which states are trying to restructure their own labour markets. Keywords: neoliberalism, neoliberal policies, deregulation, flexibilization, labour market