Temporary Agency Work in Europe

Abstract

Chapter 9 by Michon provides an overview of nonstandard work in Europe and discusses one institutional response—the growth of tem-18 Gleason porary help fi rms (also called temporary work agencies [TWAs]). As the need for more fl exible labor markets has become evident, temporary work agencies have emerged as institutions that facilitate fl exibility. However, like Japan, a number of European countries previously have prohibited or severely limited temporary employment agencies as part of their national policies to support full employment; the notable exception is France. Consequently, these relatively new labor market institutions still are evolving within each country as well as in the context of the European Union (EU). The EU is working toward common approaches to regulating employment policies and labor markets and institutions such as temporary work agencies to facilitate greater labor market integration.16 Michon provides an overview of temporary agency work (TAW) in the member nations of the EU. He discusses the diffi culties of comparative analysis across countries because there is no common defi nition of TAW or common method of regulating TAW through laws and collective bargaining.17 The heterogeneity of national differences in the regulation of TAW has resulted in differing workforce characteristics. For example, in Germany TAW is primarily used in the industrial sector and employs male manual laborers, while in Denmark it is found primarily in the service sector employing white-collar females. The chapter provides an overview of the complexities of the various national approaches to regulating TAW and the activities of the “social partners” (employers and unions). While employers have created national TWA employer organizations, unions typically have not reated comparable associations due to their hostility to TAW. Michon discusses the ways in which the differences in perspectives on public policy of the employer organizations and unions are being negotiated in some countries, and he reviews the attention being given in varying degrees to protections of TAW workers in the member nations. The chapter concludes with a brief discussion of the challenges of developing within the EU a more standardized approach to regulating temporary agency work.