Complying with Europe: EU Harmonisation and Soft Law in the Member States

by Gerda Falkner, Oliver Treib, Miriam Hartlapp, Simone Leiber

Overview

What does EU law truly mean for the member states? This book presents the first encompassing and in-depth empirical study of the effects of 'voluntaristic' and (partly) 'soft' EU policies in all 15 member states. It examines 90 case studies across a range of EU Directives and clarifies contemporary issues in political science, integration theory, and social policy. The study concludes that major implementation failures prevail and that, to date, the European Commission has not been able to adequately perform its control function.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521615136
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	05/26/2005
Series:	Themes in European Governance
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	420
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Gerd Falkner is Head of the Department of Political Science at the Institute for Advanced Studies, Vienna and Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Vienna.

Oliver Treib is Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science, Institute for Advanced Studies, Vienna.

Miriam Hartlapp is Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, Cologne.

Simone Leiber is Researcher in Political Science at the Institute for Economic and Social Studies, Düsseldorf.

Table of Contents

Preface; 1. Introduction: flexible EU governance in domestic practice; 2. Theorising the domestic impact of EU law: the state of the art and beyond; 3. EU social policy over time: the role of Directive; 4. The Employment Contract Information Directive: a small but useful social complement to the internal market; 5. The Pregnant Workers Directive: European social policy between protection and employability; 6. The Working Time Directive: European standards taken hostage by domestic politics; 7. The Young Workers Directive: a safety net with holes; 8. The Parental Leave Directive: compulsory policy innovation and voluntary over-implementation; 9. The Part-time Work Directive: a facilitator of national reforms; 10. Voluntary reforms triggered by the Directives; 11. The EU Commission and (non-)compliance in the Member States; 12. Beyond policy change: convergence of national public-private relations?; 13. Implementation across countries and Directive; 14. Why do Member States fail to comply? Testing the hypotheses suggested in the literature; 15. Making sense of compliance patterns: a typology; 16. Conclusions: myth and reality of 'social Europe'; References.

Editorial Reviews

"This is an important volume that innovates in many respects and should certainly be on your bookshelf. In theoretical terms it contributes to the lively debate about Europeanization, while empirically it revives the issue of social Europe, bringing new insights to a theme that had seemed well covered. In practical terms, too, it presents ideas to improve implementation processes." - Journal of European Social Policy

"This is an excellent book on an important theme in European governance, forming an essential part of a wide-ranging, multi-authored series. Its excellence derives from its detailed, scholarly approach which is both exhaustive and, in the end, compelling in its conclusions. Once again it reminds us of the importance of consent, at all levels, if good laws are to prevail over arbitrary behaviour. It is a lesson that Europe has to perhaps relearn in every generation."
Industrial Relations Journal

"… readers interested in EU law, especially in social policy convergence, particularly in the area of labour law, will find this an interesting addition to their library."
Law and Politics

"There has been a recent surge in interest in studying compliance with European laws and regulations. … This book contributes significantly to this literature, by broadening the range of factors and actors that might prevent or facilitate implementation, and by showing that the method of careful case studies can accumulate interesting insights"
West European Politics

"At a time when there exists a multitude of publications on the Europeanization of government policies, this present study will serve as a benchmark as to the manner in which the impact of European Directives on the member states can be tested." ... "... this is an essential book, not only for the study of European social policies but also, and above all, for a systematic and finely-tuned understanding of the political processes involved in the implementation (or otherwise) of European law."
Bruno Palier, Sciences Po, Paris, EUSA

"A new study by Gerda Falkner of Vienna and her collaborators reminds us that for many political scientists, and lawyers too, the question of compliance and implementation is best posed at a microscopic than at a macroscopic level. Their detailed study of the EU-wide implementation of a number of controversial measures with redistributive consequences in the area of social and employment policy ... draws a number of arresting conclusions."
Neil Walker, EUI Review

From the Publisher