Pathways of Change in CMEs: Training Regimes in Germany and the Netherlands

Abstract

This paper provides a comparative analysis of training regimes in Germany and the Netherlands. Both countries are CMEs with similar institutions, but their training regimes differ in important ways. The paper first maps the similarities and differences in the training regimes in both countries and then turns to three questions that frame the analysis of these similarities and differences. First, how have skills regimes adjusted to changes in economic and employment structure, such as de-industrialization and the rise of the service economy? Second, how much does the structure and adaptability of the raining regime help to explain the relative success of the Dutch employment miracle? Does the Dutch training regime represent successful institutional adaptation to changed economic circumstances? Conversely, does the inflexibility of the training regime contribute to the German employment malaise? Finally, what do these findings suggest for the analysis of the political economy of skills regimes in other CMEs?