Report Of The Parliamentary Delegation To The 129th Inter Parliamentary Union Assembly Geneva Switzerland And Bilateral Visit To The European Parliament And West Flanders 1 9 October 2013

Collective bargaining involves a process of negotiation between one or more unions and an employer or employers' organisation(s). The outcome is a collective agreement that defines terms of employment - typically wages, working hours and in-work benefits. The agreement affords labour protection: minimum wages, regular earnings; limits on working hours and predictable work schedules; safe working environments; parental leave and sick leave; and a fair share in the benefits of increased productivity. The International Labour Organization (ILO) Collective Agreements Recommendation 1951 (No. 91) considers, where appropriate and having regard to national practice, that measures should be taken to extend the application of all or some provisions of a collective agreement to all employers and workers included wthin the domain of the agreement. The extension of a collective agreement generalises the terms and conditions of employment, agreed between organised firms and workers, represented through their association(s) and union(s), to the non-organised firms within a sector, occupation or territory. The collection of chapters in this volume are about the extension of collective agreements as an act of public policy.

Sport is a global phenomenon engaging billions of people and generating annual revenues of more than US$ 145 billion. Problems in the governance of sports organisations, fixing of matches and staging of major sporting events have spurred action on many fronts. Yet attempts to stop corruption in sport are still at an early stage. The Global Corruption Report (GCR) on sport is the most comprehensive analysis of sports corruption to date. It consists of more than 60 contributions from leading experts in the fields of corruption and sport, from sports organisations, governments, multilateral institutions, sponsors, athletes, supporters, academia and the wider anti-corruption movement. This GCR provides essential analysis for understanding the corruption risks in sport, focusing on sports governance, the business of sport, planning of major events, and match-fixing. It highlights the significant work that has already been done and presents new approaches to strengthening integrity in sport. In addition to measuring transparency and accountability, the GCR gives priority to participation, from sponsors to athletes to supporters an essential to restoring trust in sport.

Destination Europe interprets and interrelates the major political, economic and security developments in Europe--including transatlantic relations--from the end of World War II up until the present time, and looks ahead to how the continent may evolve politically in the future. The book fills a definite lacuna in the current literature on Europe, as most studies cover only specific aspects, such as the European Union. Destination Europe, by contrast, weaves all the different strands of European events together into a single overall and up-to-date picture and gives the reader a deeper understanding of the continent and its current and future challenges.

The World Public Sector Report will be published every two years with the intention of reviewing major trends and issues concerning public administration and governance. This inaugural issue of the report considers the process of globalisation and the challenges and opportunities it offers for the role of the public sector in countries around the world. It is increasingly being acknowledged that the State is a key actor in the development process and has a major role to play in making globalisation work for all, for example in alleviating poverty and income inequality, advancing human rights, promoting sustainable development and combating international crime. Issues discussed in the report include: the many facets of globalisation; its impact on the State; reinforcing state institutions and social policies; defining and measuring the size of the State.

In this book, Michael F. Palo explains how a historical and theoretical examination of Belgian neutrality, 1839-1940, can help readers understand the behaviour of small/weak democracies in the international system.

Europe? What is it? A land mass (plus a few islands) which stretches from Portugal to the Russian Urals? Or at least up to the Turkish Bosporus? Or (still) just to the German border? A continent with a common history? A common language, culture, religion? A common anything? This book is collection of original contributions solicited by the Alfred Herrrhausen Society for International Dialogue. The Herrhausen Society was set up in 1992 by Deutsche Bank and provides a forum for examining socially relevant issues, identifying the problems and discussing their possible solutions. Authors include: Josef Ackermann, Ulrich Beck, Matthias Berninger, Ralf Dahrendorf, Patrik Cox, Ismael Cem, Laszlo Foldenyi; Rabbi David J.Goldberg, Adolf Muschg, Chenjerai Hove, Sergei Karaganow, Tommy Koh, Noelle Lenoir; Ma Canrong; Cees Noteboom; Joseph Nye; Yasar Huri Ozturk; Jiri Pehe; Richard Perle; Andrej Plesu; Michael Portillo; Avi Primor; Gunther Verheugen; Ilija Trojanow; Slavenka Drakulic; Janusz Reiter; Peter Ruzicka; Michael Walzer; Jean-Claude Trichet; Friedrich Kardinal Wetter; Ernst-Ludwig Winnacker; Vaira Vike-Freiberga; William Wallace; Robert Weinberg; Valery Giscard d'Estaing; Romano Prodi; Jacques Le Goff; Throw out the word 'Europe' to most members of the European Union, and they will assume you are talking about their exclusive club of fifteen-about-to-become-twenty-five-plus countries. Most members of the EU, that is, but not all. Someone from the U.K. will likely think you are referring to the countries across the Channel - some of which may belong to the Union, some not, but my goodness, what's the difference? Europe - someone from a wannabe EU country, or even an about-to-be one, especially from a country situated in middle, or central, or eastern - uh - Europe? - will hardly think of Europe as synonymous with the European Union.After all, they too are Europeans, even though they don't belong to the EU. Or are they? The rest of the world - the Americas, Africa, Asia, Australasia - thinks they are, it's mainly EU members who don't. Indeed, it's the rest of the world which provides a European identity to the people from the bits of Europe beyond the EU (Michael Portillo). Europe - for the Norwegians or the Swiss, the question doesn't even present itself. They know they're Europeans, and so, funnily enough, do the bona-fide members of the European Union. Desperately Seeking Europe is a roadmap which contains 36 contributions from international politicians, sociologists, economists and renowned writers, all of whom have their own opinions on what Europe is, was, will be or should be - as the case may be. The book presents a mosaic of provocative views, in some cases at odds with each other, in others, surprisingly similar, but often for quite different reasons. A fascinating read!

Reader intended to stimulate thinking about the future direction of national and regional labour policies, with a view to good governance in terms of participation, transparency, credibility and accountability. Includes case studies from a number of Caribbean countries as well as ILO contributions by S.J. Goolsarran on labour administration and social dialogue, and an extract from "Labour inspection: a guide to the profession", by W. von Richthofen.