Comparative Employment Relations: An Introduction

This major new textbook provides a concise introduction toemployment and industrial relations. Unlike many other textbooks,this adopts a comparative approach, examining the changing natureof employment practices in relation to the processes ofglobalization, and engaging critically with the literature on HumanResource Management. By taking account of the internationaldimension of employment relations, this book is at the forefront ofnew developments in the field. The thematic approach of Comparative Employment Relations makes itdistinctive from the country-by-country studies of this topic. JackEaton synthesizes recent work in the field to establish a basis forfurther study in the most important areas of industrial relations,including Japanese-style employment practices; comparativecollective bargaining; the rules of employment and routes to skillformation; collective labour law; globalization and transnationalcompanies. He concludes by examining the prospects for comparativeemployment relations. By equipping students with a set of usefulconcepts and perspectives, this book will give them the confidenceto explore the now extensive international literature on employmentmanagement, and to utilize the methods of comparative analysis intheir own work. This book will be essential reading for second- and third-yearundergraduates studying business, management, economics and thesociology of work and industry.