Flexicurity without security An inquiry into the Danish flexicurity model in a neo-liberal era Nielsen, Niels Jul; Olsen, Janus Jul

Published in: Ethnologia Europaea

Publication date: 2017

Citation for published version (APA): Nielsen, N. J., & Olsen, J. J. (2017). Flexicurity without security: An inquiry into the Danish flexicurity model in a neo-liberal era. Ethnologia Europaea, 2017(2), 40-56.

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Ethnologia Europaea 47:2 2017 issn 0425 4597 0425 issn 9 4611 978 635 ISBN 87 - in burek Slovenia, one of the country’s most most the country’s of one Slovenia, foods. disrespected yet and popular performance. And finally, Jernej Mlekuž Jernej Mlekuž finally, And performance. and complexity the symbolic explores of the significance material issue’s cover art, looks at the folklore of of the folklore art, looks at cover issue’s in Belarus, local attitudes Potemkinism the “façade” around narratives and as a potential threat to societal to stability threat a potential as article, Astapova’s peace. Anastasiya and this for the inspiration provides which welfare system have resulted from the from resulted have system welfare class the working of a perception of loss doubts. Then Niels Jul Nielsen and Janus Janus and Nielsen Jul Niels Then doubts. the neoliberal how explain Olsen Jul social in Denmark’s transformations threat of an epidemic as well as adverse adverse as well as epidemic an of threat double- face of vaccinations side-effects deal their own with and situations bind issues are also at stake in Britta Lund- in Britta stake also at are issues Swedish how of examination gren’s in the involved providers health-care as emotions to the stand-up comedian’s comedian’s the stand-up to emotions as Ethical elsewhere. and in Finland stage satire is intertwined with moral under moral with intertwined is satire discussions recent bringing standings, well ethics as of the anthropology from This issue opens with an in-depth analy- in-depth an opens with issue This that the ways of Lindfors Antti by sis EE47-2_omsl_1K.indd 1 Ethnologia Europaea Journal of European Ethnology

Volume 47:2 2017

MUSEUM TUSCULANUM PRESS Copyright © 2017 Ethnologia Europaea, Copenhagen Printed in Sweden by Exakta, Malmö 2017 Cover and layout Pernille Sys Hansen, Damp Design Cover photo Photo manipulation by the artist Zacharie Gaudrillot-Roy (Façades 2–11) ISBN 978 87 635 4611 9 ISSN 0425 4597

Ethnologia Europaea is an official journal of Société Internationale d’Ethnologie et de Folklore (SIEF).

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Museum Tusculanum Press Dantes Plads 1 DK-1556 Copenhagen V Denmark www.mtp.dk CONTENTS

Antti Lindfors Performance of Moral Accountability and the Ethics of Satire in Stand-up Comedy 5

Britta Lundgren Health Politics, Solidarity and Social Justice. An Ethnography of Enunciatory Communities during and after the H1N1 Pandemic in Sweden 22

Niels Jul Nielsen and Janus Jul Olsen Flexicurity without Security. An Inquiry into the Danish Flexicurity Model in a Neoliberal Era 40

Anastasiya Astapova When the President Comes. Potemkinist Order as an Alternative to Democracy in Belarus 57

Jernej Mlekuž “We Asked for Workers. We Got Bureks Instead”. Meanings and Material Significance of the Burek in Slovenia 72 FLEXICURITY WITHOUT SECURITY An Inquiry into the Danish Flexicurity Model in a Neoliberal Era

Niels Jul Nielsen, University of Copenhagen, and Janus Jul Olsen, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Copenhagen Business School

The Danish flexicurity model is widely acknowledged and even advocated by the European Com- mission as a measure to achieve economic progress without compromising basic social conditions. It is therefore paradoxical that over the past decades the security component of the flexicurity model has faced steady retrenchments, jeopardizing its overall balance. The article applies a his- torical approach to understanding the transformation that has given way to a weakened position of workers in society, and asserts that the changes of the flexicurity model have been conditioned by the disappearance of the view of the “working class” as a potential threat to societal peace – a change closely connected to the waning of an alternative to capitalism and the related opportunity for a spread of neoliberal political economy.

Keywords: flexicurity, neoliberalism, Keynesianism, Cold War, deregulation

The Danish Flexicurity Model not fear difficulties or high costs related to firing The Danish flexicurity model is generally regarded employees. While these two components are consid- as a central component of Denmark’s welfare re- ered to be the main axes of the Danish flexicurity gime. Through liberal dismissal regulations, high model, the model possesses a third component: ac- unemployment benefits and active labour market tive labour market policies. These serve to redirect policies, a mobile and well-functioning labour mar- the unemployed into the labour market, increasing ket system has been institutionalized as an integral the likelihood of re-employment (Kongshøj Madsen part of the Danish welfare state, benefitting both so- 2008). Flexicurity thus manages to navigate between cial partners (Andersen & Mailand 2005; Bredgaard a capitalist market economy and a demand for social & Kongshøj Madsen 2015; Jensen 2017; Kongshøj justice and safety: Madsen 2008). In its basic definition, the flexicurity model is the institutional system that on the one The fundamental idea behind the concept of hand allows employers to easily hire and fire, and flexicurity is that flexibility and security are not on the other hand guarantees employees financial contradictory to one another, but in many situ- security through high unemployment benefits and ations can be mutually supportive. Furthermore, higher probability of re-employment; employers do flexibility is not the monopoly of the employers,­

40 Niels Jul Nielsen and JanusETHNOLOGIA Jul Olsen EUROPAEA 2017: Flexicurity 47:2 without Security. An Inquiry into the Danish Flexicurity Model in a Neoliberal Era. Ethnologia Europaea 47:2, 40–56. © Museum Tusculanum Press. just as security is not the monopoly of the em- prospect of a continuous decline points to a loss of ployees. […] So, the foundation is there for a critical mass that will eventually jeopardize the le- new interaction between flexibility and security, gitimacy of the trade unions as a basic pillar of la- which stresses the potential for win-win outcomes bour market regulation. in situations, which are traditionally conceived as characterised by conflicting interests. (Kongshøj Flexicurity and the EU Madsen 2008: 3) Flexicurity has won international recognition be- cause it combines market efficiency with social con- The security component of the Danish flexicurity cerns.2 Though flexicurity can take many forms,3 it model, with an increased focus on minimizing the was the Danish version of it that the EU Commis- deficits of unemployment, was built from the begin- sion regarded as the ideal when it adopted flexicurity ning of the twentieth century and especially priori­ as a key concept within the European Employment tized in the post-war welfare regime. The model is strategy in 2006–2007 (Jensen 2017), as “a crucial closely related to the structure of the so-called Dan- element in modernising the EU’s labour market” ish Model, characterized by (relatively) indepen- (Eur-Lex 2007a). The following excerpt reveals the dently acting social partners that act through mu- reason behind the acknowledgment of the Danish tual recognition (Due & Madsen 1993; Due, Madsen flexicurity model: & Jensen 1993; Jensen 2015). In 1899, the labour unions and the employers’ organisations agreed on The Danish labour market shows a successful the so-called September Compromise, as the Danish combination of flexibility and security, offering workers accepted employers’ right to liberally hire flexible labour laws and relatively low job protec- and fire employees. In return, workers were allowed tion, extensive efforts on lifelong learning and ac- to organize and were acknowledged as a collec- tive labour market policies, and a generous social tive actor with the mandate to negotiate wages and security system. (Eur-Lex 2007b) work conditions that were settled through collective agreements (Ibsen & Jørgensen 1978; Jensen 2015; By 2006, the European Commission had adopted Jul Nielsen 2002). The Danish Model thus can be the concept of flexicurity, regarding it to be an in- seen as a dynamic institutional arrangement, which strumental element in EU’s goal to create both social constitutes the Danish industrial relations system, cohesion and a competitive labour market. As José as the model is built on negotiation between social Manuel Barroso stated in 2006 at the Year of Work- partners to reach collective agreements.1 An impor- ers’ Mobility Launch Conference, “This concept of tant characteristic of the Danish Model has been ‘flexicurity’ is a way of ensuring that employers and that the percentage of organized workers has been workers feel they have the flexibility, but also the se- large, and this has provided the system with a high curity they need” (Keune & Jepsen 2007: 8). level of legitimacy. However, similar to what can be Flexicurity is thus regarded by the European Uni­ observed across Europe (Strøby Jensen 2004), weak- on as a model that makes it possible to maintain ened Danish unions have experienced slowly declin- popular support for liberal dismissal policies. And ing membership rates, from 73 percent in 1995 to 67 as the following excerpt shows, Denmark is regarded percent in 2010; if the membership of the increas- as a prime example of how flexicurity can be carried ingly successful yellow unions (comparable to mere out successfully: insurance agencies and not involved in agreement negotiations) is deducted, the decline in the same The Dutch and Danish experience are interpret- period is from 71 percent to 61 percent (Due, Pihl ed as proof that alternative approaches to simple & Madsen 2010: 19). Although memberships are deregulation can be successful in providing high still relatively high compared to other countries, the levels of flexibility, without this being at the cost

ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 41 of increased workers’ insecurity. Hence, flexicurity Kaspersen and Gabriel (2005). Through different would offer options for a market with a human terminologies these scholars perceive the state as a face, fitting European varieties of capitalism better subject, and the social groups within the states as than the deregulation approach which dominates life-modes (Højrup’s terminology, see later) that are American capitalism. (Keune & Jepsen 2007: 6) understood as dependent subjects whose conditions of existence rely on state recognition. The approach Given the widespread acknowledgement of the Dan- applies the German philosopher G.W.F. Hegel’s con- ish flexicurity model, it stands out as a paradox that cept of recognition to explain how a relation of mutu- the security component of it has come increasingly al recognition between states determines the state’s under strain (Andersen, Mailand & Ibsen 2012; Jul external position. A state must be strong enough to Nielsen 2004; Jørgensen 2011; Kongshøj Madsen be recognized by the other states in the state-system. 2011).4 In the following sections, we will examine the This strength is rooted internally in the individual underlying historical transformations that we argue state: in the army, the civil society, the economy, are pivotal to understanding such a development as the institutional systems etc. The state’s struggle for more than merely a superficial outcome of economic recognition in the state-system is therefore closely fluctuations (culminating with the financial crisis in connected to the internal landscape of the state, this 2008). First, we turn to a brief historical account of implying that the dependent subjects’ conditions of the development in unemployment benefits as one existence are realized on the state’s premises, serving of the basic security components of the Danish flexi- as a means to the state’s survival (for a detailed ac- curity model. We do not intend to make a compre- count of this way of employing a Hegelian inspired hensive analysis of the entire security dimension of conceptual hierarchy, see Højrup 2003). Obviously, flexicurity in the Danish context, which would entail social practices are not necessarily initiated “from a detailed account of the spectrum of active labour above”; but if they jeopardize the principal concerns market policies and the relationship between these of the state, they will not endure, or the state will policies and unemployment benefits (where devel- collapse. The rise of a conscious labour population opment of the former in line with neoliberal reason- in the late nineteenth century is an example of a ing could be advocated to partially replace the with- movement “from below”, which, following resist- drawal of the latter). Rather, our aim is to illustrate ance from the state, was split in a complex process how the historical development of unemployment into a politically recognized part (evolving into la- benefits illuminates a shift in the approach to social bour unions, political parties and other organisa- welfare. tions) and non-recognized factions (radical anti- system organisations and groups) that were regarded Theoretical and Methodological Foundation as destabilizing to the state (Jul Nielsen 2002). As a basis for our argumentation throughout the ar- To understand how the external struggle for recog­ ticle, we will briefly present key components of its nition is related to the way in which workers as a applied theoretical framework, as gazing through social group have been handled within the Danish this lens enables an understanding of the underlying state in different periods, this article applies a meth- foundation for the further analysis of the macropo- odology of historical analysis. Hereby it is illumi- litical transitions that have resulted in the changing nated how developments in the external milieu of conditions for the Danish flexicurity model. the Danish state have conditioned different internal The theoretical lens that this article applies is perceptions and priorities of social groups against the ethnological state and life-mode theory, which the background of larger political and economic parallels neo-Marxist scholarship and is aligned transformations. In the ethnological endeavour to with social scientists and ethnologists such as Bose- understand the principal relation between ways of rup (1986), Højrup (2003), Kaspersen (2012), and living and the conditions on which these are based, a

42 ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 historical analysis can illuminate how and why basic trenchments have caused public debate and political living conditions for particular life-modes undergo controversies in the left and right, the downward a transformation. tendency has been almost independent of the po- litical leanings of the government in power. Thus, Unemployment Benefits under Strain when a centre-left government took over in 2011, it Danish unemployment benefits have suffered severe restricted itself to implementing acute and tempo- retrenchments over the past decades. Unemployment rary policies to ease the immediate negative effects benefits peaked in the mid-1970s and have since then from a recent reform made by the previous adminis- declined gradually (Mailand 2010). In essence, the tration, rather than policies with the overall aim of Danish unemployment benefits are constituted by reversing reductions from previous years. In other three components: (1) the degree to which the bene­ words, the established view across political parties fits cover the original wage of the unemployed; (2) (with the exception of those to the far political left) the amount of time during which the unemployed is has been to use flexibility to meet market demands, entitled to receive benefits; (3) the temporal require- pushing security concerns to the side-line. ments for accruing the right to receive unemploy- What we argue – by examining unemployment ment benefits. Since the early 1980s, all three have benefits – is that an aggravation of the security been drastically cut back. An analysis made in 2004 component of the flexicurity model does not stand by the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) alone as evidence of a weakened labour side. It is showed that compensations since 1982 had been re- closely connected with a decline in influence of the duced by 25 percent. With the labour market reform Danish trade unions (the background of which we in 1993–94, the period in which one could receive will return to). Several concrete political initiatives unemployment benefits was fixed at seven years, since the millennium have had direct influence on from a previously de facto unlimited time period, the unions’ conditions. In 2002, the Danish gov- while continuous retrenchments followed until 1999 ernment, for instance, implemented an act that dis- when it was fixed at four years. In the 1990s, the op- solved the bonds between a particular unemploy- position and the unions accepted these reductions in ment fund and a particular trade union, allowing unemployment benefit period because they received for the yellow unions to flourish (Kjellberg & Ibsen extended active labour market initiatives in return. 2016). In 2006, in addition, it implemented an act For instance in 1996, when the unemployment bene­ that abolished the right to let employment be condi- fit period was reduced to five years, full time activa- tioned by membership in a particular trade union. tion was imposed after two years of unemployment These initiatives among others have resulted in de- (Mailand 2010: 6). clines in membership from the red unions; and even The financial crisis in 2008 took its toll on the during the latest social democratic government, the Danish economy, as it did across Europe. From an relationship to the unions was close to the breaking unemployment rate close to structural unemploy- point (Jensen 2017). ment (3.4 percent) prior to the crisis, the unem- It is relevant to include another example of how ployment rate was doubled in 2010. With the un- the general framework of worker protection has employment benefit reform Dagpengereformen( ) in undergone a transition. The European open border 2010, severe amendments were made to the Danish system – embedded in the Schengen agreement and unemployment benefits. The period of receiving the tenets of the four freedoms (freedom of capital, benefits was halved from four to two years, while commodities, services and labour) – has brought the accruing requirement (genoptjeningskravet) was about an increased competition that severely impacts doubled: the work requirement went from 26 weeks worker livelihoods. With the addition of ten new within three years to at least 52 weeks within three countries during the EU enlargement in 2004 (in- years (Mailand 2015). Although the continuous re- cluding eight from the former Eastern bloc), work-

ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 43 ers from low-wage and high-wage countries became decline of labour influence that has taken place not part of the same labour market. The open border only in Denmark but also across Europe (Andreß & system provided the former with new opportunities Lohmann 2008; Standing 2011; Strøby Jensen 2004). abroad, while the latter were subjected to competi- tion of a kind that had been avoided for decades due Bringing in a Historical Perspective on the to influential labour organisations. As Randall Han- Political Economy and Theorizing “Class” sen – focusing on West Germany, Great Britain and The first systemic change has been a paradigmatic France but arguing it to be a pattern applying also to shift from a Keynesian to a neoliberal paradigm in other Northern European countries – has illustrat- the political economy, beginning with the Thatcher ed: when the first afterwar waves of labour migration era in the late 1970s. The term neoliberalism is am- were seen in the 1960s, strong labour unions in the biguous; in some cases it refers narrowly to a mac- receiving countries had the power to safeguard that roeconomic doctrine, while in others it is used as a the guest-workers were granted wage and working broad reference to capitalism and global inequalities. conditions equal to the domestic workers, that they In the present article we see it as a form of political were generally integrated in the unionized system, economy that favours deregulation, free trade, pri- and that they managed to curb the influx to limited vatization and other regulatory forms that are based quotas (Hansen 2003). That labour migration since on market logic, which implies that a market is not the 1990s has managed to stress job security, wages understood as a pre-social form but rather as a po- and working conditions (Andreß & Lohmann 2008; litical creation (Harvey 2005; Wacquant 2012: 71). Favell 2008, 2009; Friberg 2012; Jul Nielsen & Sand- Accordingly, just like politics matter in a neoliberal berg 2014; Lubanski 1999; Stan & Erne 2016; Stand- regime, liberal currents played an important role ing 2011) reveals a much weaker and less influential during the era of (what could generally be referred to labour agenda that has lost the political support it as) Keynesianism. This era also embraced a diversity had half a century ago. In Denmark since 2004, the of specific regimes, ranging for example from the number of so-called Eastern workers (from the for- social democratic systems of Scandinavia with (rela- mer Eastern bloc countries) has continued to rise, tively) independently acting social partners to more thereby challenging conditions within sectors with corporatist models of continental Europe. Despite low-skilled jobs such as construction, cleaning and the variety of forms, neoliberalism emerged as the agriculture (Andersen & Felbo-Kolding 2013; An- anti-thesis to the Keynesian regimes, highlighting dersen & Pedersen 2007; Bræmer & Redder 2017; Jul the idea of the free possessive individual as a contrast Nielsen 2016; Andersen & Arnholz 2007). to state-led social engineering (S. Hall 2011: 706). Thus, we argue that the changes witnessed during We will later return to what could be argued to be a the previous decades in the Danish flexicurity mod- paradigmatic shift to a neoliberal political econo­my el are symptoms of a principal transformation of during the 1970s and 1980s. For the moment, it is the recognition of workers as a particular societal relevant to reiterate that this shift, along with a gen- group, and not merely of shifting currents of po- eral pressure on the European welfare states from litical orientation. In the following section, we ex- an increasingly globalized economy, has given rise, amine two macropolitical changes that have taken since the 1980s, to a slow but steady challenge to the place during the twentieth century, which, we argue, voice of labour. Through the discursive agenda set can be understood as catalysts for the retrenchments by a neoliberal paradigm, it is generally perceived as that have been imposed on the security component less and less legitimate, both economically and so- of the Danish flexicurity model since the 1980s. Al- cially, to provide social security on a collective basis. though we mainly focus on Danish material here, Another principal macropolitical change – and and specifically on the Danish flexicurity model, we arguably also an important condition for the spread see these transformations as evidence of an overall of neoliberalism – during the previous half century

44 ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 has been the gradual diminishing of the “working bearing; and, notably, not only when concerned class” as a potential political threat. Without en- with contemporary circumstances. As historian Ga- gaging in a lengthy exposé concerning the concept reth Stedmann Jones phrased it in 1983, “‘class’ is of the “working class”5, it is nevertheless appropri- a discursive rather than (...) an ontological reality” ate to relate the theoretical framework employed in (Stedman Jones 1983: 7). Historian Patrick Joyce the present article to the way in which the notion of furthered this idea, concluding from an analysis of “class” has played a role in both academia and the nineteenth-century material that, “Other forms of public discourse. State and life-mode theory that has the self and of collective identity emerge, long ob- been developed since the 1980s is rooted in a Marx- scured by the concentration on class” (Joyce 1994). ian framework (Højrup 2003). The concept of mode In general, “class” became disregarded as a primary of production and thus people’s distinct relation to concept for understanding everyday culture, in fa- “processes of production and the disposition of the vour of concepts such as “identity” that are suppos- product” (Carrier 2015: 29) are regarded as key to an edly more sensitive to empirical complexity (Car- understanding of reproducible ways of living: life- rier, Kalb & Carbonella 2015: 19; Jul Nielsen 2013b, modes. Notably, unlike many Marxist usages of the 2016). To the extent that the concept of class was re- notion of class, a life-mode should not be regarded garded as a token of a shared, homogenous worker’s as an empirical category of human beings, but as a culture, postmodernism’s critique was correct and concept that designates principally different ways timely; the self and the social take many forms, and of upholding a viable existence (Marx himself was relevant are also issues of gender, race and national- ambiguous on this point and never finished the last ism (Berlanstein 1993; Boris & Janssens 1999; Boyd chapter of Capital, in which he begins to elaborate & McWilliam 1995; Carrier 2015), patterns of at- what it is that constitutes “class”). The theoretically titudes (Ambjörnsson 1988; Horgby 1993; Lüdtke determined life-mode concepts themselves make up 1986), and many other forms of “the social”. Howev- necessary preconditions for the reproduction of the er, postmodernism does not provide a possible hier­ (theoretically determined) modes of production that archy of the infinite aspects that influence culture; as are regarded as necessary in a given social formation. Carrier provocatively puts it (while advocating a re- The concept of the capitalist mode of production, for newed focus on class and systemic understandings), instance, requires three (concepts of) life-modes “the drift in anthropology since the 1970s has been for its reproduction: an investor life-mode (provid- toward description without analysis… we can be- ing necessary production apparatus and working gin to ask, once more, not just questions about what capital) and two life-modes that contribute to differ- and how, but also questions about why and where it ent forms of “work”, principally distinct from each leads” (Carrier 2015: 39f.) other. The wage-earner life-mode provides work of The concept of life-mode includes a multitude a predefined kind (requiring more or less skill) and of relations and social identifications; but with the the career-professional life-mode contributes unde- theory’s focus on cultural practices’ ability to re- fined ideas and skills that provide a company with produce themselves (and thus a matter of principal the necessary innovative edge to put it ahead of com- importance for this article), the basic conditions for petitors, which is key to the survival of the company. the continuance of a life-mode has precedence over In general, it can be argued that since the 1980s, other aspects of the practice. In the case of a wage- systemic understandings have fallen victim to an earner life-mode, a theoretical need to create wage- increasing interest in agency, “culminating in the earner monopolies can be determined. A person who emergence of postmodernism which often became lives from the sale of predefined tasks of some sort a rejection of all systems” (Carrier 2015: 37) This will always be exposed to underselling (since such scholarly development dissolved the view of a con- tasks have an abundant supply of labour). Conse- cept such as class, as having relevant analytical quently, it is necessary to find a way to monopolize

ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 45 the supply of work to prevent an open competition twentieth century, and notably in the Keynesian era, in the commodity of labour. Monopolization can generally represented a top priority on the political take the form of organized unions, but it can also agenda. But since the 1980s, labour organisations rely on informal relations such as groups of work- and unions (which moreover as mentioned have a ers engaging in a personal relationship with an em- declining membership) have generally found them- ployer. Monopolization can imply an avoidance of selves in a weaker bargaining position when nego- union organization in order to bring together an at- tiating terms and conditions with the employers’ tractive group of cheap labour, as can be observed in organisations, as governments (leaning on neolib- some cases with migrant workers (Jul Nielsen 2013b, eral ideology) have become less inclined to support 2016; Jul Nielsen & Sandberg 2014). Moreover, wage- union demands. The weak position of “labour” is earner monopolies are always in a mutual competi- closely linked with the aforementioned prevalence tive relation to each other (for an elaboration of the of a neoliberal policy paradigm, and we argue below concept of wage-earner monopolies, the necessary that neoliberalism’s triumphal progress is only un- co-existence of inclusion and exclusion that it im- derstandable alongside the significant transforma- plies, and the connection to the writings of Marx, see tions in the state system. The collapse of the Soviet Jul Nielsen 2002, 2013a). Thus, no matter the form Union and the end of the Cold War constituted – at in which we find groups of workers – gendered, na- least for a period – a de facto end to an alternative tionalistic, diligent, rebellious, etc. – we must be able to capitalism, as the formerly planned economies to account for the way in which this cultural pattern were integrated into the world economy. With these does not contradict the basic demand to maintain a changes, the image of the “working class” as a po- livelihood that is conditioned by some sort of wage- tential threat vanished. Although for decades a revo- earner monopoly. Later, we briefly return to how lutionary prospect had been rather unlikely (despite state- and life-mode theory not only operates on the continuous radical rhetoric well into the 1980s), the level of life-modes and modes of production, but – in transition, as we argue below, gradually caused a de- contrast to a Marxian legacy – puts precedence on cline in the influence of “labour”. the concept of the state; the state is understood as Most of the literature on Danish flexicurity re- ultimately conditioning the life-modes and thus also volves around the model itself. It deals with its the practice as a worker. historical development, specific elements, latest The scholarly discussions of what constitutes the changes, or contemporary opinions on flexicurity working class as a theoretical concept have regularly (Andersen & Hansen 2007; Bredgaard & Kongshøj been entangled in the societal discourse, where the Madsen 2015; Jensen 2015; Keune & Jepsen 2007; use of the notion served to attain influence for left- Mailand 2010, 2015). While these approaches are wingers, both with and without working-class roots. obviously important to understand the model and The term “labour”, on the other hand, was often its role in determining working conditions, they used to refer more broadly to ordinary people or “the do not comprehend the preconditions of the model common man”. The “working class” in the public in a broader perspective. To grasp the extent of the discourse is largely a notion that refers to the world changes of how flexicurity is realized, it is relevant order that existed prior to the collapse of the Soviet to inquire into the transformation of the role of “la- Union, and it has disappeared with the decline of bour” in a political and ideological context. This is workers’ discursive influence; symptomatically, the not limited to Denmark but applies in general terms notion is regaining usage following Brexit and the to Western Europe, although specific forms of wel- election of Trump for president, incidents that have fare politics and of labour market and social or- recreated a political focus on workers. ganisation vary across the European states. Through When bringing in a historical approach it leaps such a lens, we may be equipped with an analytical to the eye how “labour”, throughout most of the tool capable of explaining, in macropolitical terms,

46 ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 why the model has gone through the development it To substantiate the argument empirically, we in- has, allowing for a qualified conjecture about future clude below an example that unambiguously displays prospects. how “labour” previously held a key political role which is principally different from what we find to- Labour’s Role in the Post-War Period day. The example is explored extensively in the book Why is it that “labour” played such a prominent role Between High Politics and the Workshop Floor: The on the social agenda from the end of the nineteenth Danish Worker – Before, During and After the Cold century and well into the 1980s? The common an- War (Jul Nielsen 2004; see also Jul Nielsen 2014), swer to this revolves around the industrialization of where the role of “labour” is examined in relation to European societies in the second half of the nine- the strategic concerns of the state from the end of the teenth century that brought about the establishment nineteenth century until today by looking at Danish of a new class – the “working class” – forced to sell history. The example epitomizes in a clear-cut way its labour in order to create a sustainable livelihood. how the political recognition of and influence given By organizing collectively, it succeeded in putting to one social group – in this case workers – is con- pressure on employers; and as a result, gradually nected to overall defence and security concerns of “from below” managed to raise wage and working the state; a connection that will often be of a more conditions. Though this perspective is not incor- indirect kind and thus more difficult to apprehend. rect, we argue that to fully understand the rise and The case in point dates back to 1953, at the height fall of labour influence during the subsequent more of the Cold War, with a NATO conference held in than 150 years, it is necessary to include the role of Copenhagen. Representatives of the political es- the states in which the social partners act. Thus, as tablishment were present from all member states: already touched upon, labour influence is not only Canada, France, Great Britain, Belgium, Luxem- a matter of a movement “from below”, but also – bourg, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Turkey, Iceland, Nor- and maybe ultimately conditioned by – recognition way, and Denmark – along with the United States, “from above”. the undisputed hegemon of the alliance. The objec- As stated previously, our theoretical argument is tive of the conference reveals unmistakably how se- based on the deduction that for a state to hold suf- curity matters concerned not only military power: ficient strength for recognition externally in the state system, there must be an internal endeavour to cre- NATO [should make up] an efficient manifesta- ate sufficient cohesion and legitimacy. Thus, the life- tion of the unity of the member states in not only modes (as well as modes of production) that achieve military but also, and equally importantly, in the necessary recognition that conditions their en- non-military matters, which touch upon political, durance, such as workers’ right to organize and act economic and social problems within the coun- collectively, are the life-modes that are pivotal for the tries. In the long run, a military defence in itself is viability of the state. In line with this, we argue that not sufficient to guard the grounding of Western states’ struggle for survival in the state system im- democracy.6 pacts national contexts, including the way in which social partners are understood and acknowledged, In the mid-1950s, the Cold War was at its height, and thus also the relative strength of each partner. and with both a militarily, politically and ideologi- This theoretical reasoning provides the analysis cally strong Soviet Union, the West, with the United with a conceptual hierarchy: no life-mode or mode States as the frontrunner, needed much more than of production can endure without the recognition of mere military power to withstand the Eastern threat. the state that ultimately conditions it, whereas a state In the early post-war years, despite criticisms, com- does not necessarily need its life-modes and modes munism and socialism as alternatives to capitalism of production to survive. appealed to millions of people in the West, not least

ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 47 among the working class. There was the risk that state (or in this case a coalition of states merged to- radical sentiments amongst the populace could turn gether by the Eastern counterpart). As said, we are against the established order. Social cohesion within well aware that similar unambiguous statements civil society was pivotal for the strength of the West- cannot necessarily be found in the source material ern societies; and the radicalism of the 1930s stood in other periods. However, we argue that the accen- as a fresh and frightening memory. It is in this con- tuated circumstances of the conference reveal a logic text that “labour” assumed a top priority on the po- that has been dominant for over a century, from so- litical agenda, a situation that seems highly foreign cialism’s emergence as a potential political threat in to international politics since the 1990s. The confer- the second half of the nineteenth century until the ence – concerned with youth politics, housing, edu- end of the twentieth century (see Jul Nielsen 2004, cation and a wide range of other topics connected to 2013a). To illustrate this, we will present from two civil society – plainly concluded that integration of other transitory periods, two examples that reveal a “labour” was the primary concern, with other issues similar pattern: being pushed to the side. In straightforward words Across Europe the Paris Commune of 1871 left no – characteristically with the American spelling of room for doubt among the political establishment “labor”, this reflecting USA’s stamp on the confer- that a socialist (or communist) revolt had to be re- ence (where statements and declarations had been garded as a potential threat. As a result, labour as- prepared in advance) – the principal statement of the semblies and actions were increasingly perceived in conference was: “The role of labor in world affairs this light (Bruun 1938; Jul Nielsen 2002). As is well has become a key factor.” known, the labour movement was gravely divided The reasoning behind this unambiguous state- on the question of either a radical revolutionary ment was that “labour” was the target of propaganda upheaval of capitalist society or a more graduate re- from the East, and it was among the working popu- formism (with the ultimate goal of socialism pushed lations that rebellious opinions could gain a stronger to an undefined future). In general, the European foothold. Therefore, it is no surprise that the con- states gradually, at the expense of the radicals, rec- ference concluded that labour organizations and ognized the moderate wings of the labour movement labour parties should be provided with profound that became increasingly influential. As Richard Hy- potential to influence society to improve workers’ man writes, “Trade unions… varied between (and livelihoods. This was regarded as a means to dis- often within) countries; but typically, the latter half mantle the critiques of Western capitalism and its of the nineteenth century saw the more successful alleged suppression of the “little man”. Labour rep- unions marginalizing or ritualizing their radical- resentatives were given a voice in order to allow for ism, and seeking understandings with employers on “more effective attention to the problems of work- the basis of a ‘fair day’s wage for a fair day’s work’” ers’ standards of living such as purchasing power, (Hyman 2001: 2). employment, housing needs… etc.”. As we return to The years following the First World War were below, this strategy paralleled in economic terms the again marked by mass mobilization among Europe’s priority that Keynesianism – the preferred economic working populations. The Bolshevik Revolution in tool of the period – put on maintaining a high level 1917 and subsequent establishment of communist of employment (with the social unrest of the 1930s parties across Europe (and in the U.S., sparking off as contrasting scenario) as well as general attention an intense Red Scare [Levin 1971; Schmidt 2000]) to workers’ demands.7 underlined the distinction between the moderate Thus, the statements from the 1953 NATO con- and the anti-system wing of the labour movement, ference explicitly reveals how the inclusion of “la- providing the former with convincing arguments for bour” as a basic pillar in the running of society is improved worker welfare in order to dismantle the dependent upon the particular security focus of the latter. Thus, the 1920s and 1930s throughout Europe

48 ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 saw an extension of broad social programs in hous- garet Thatcher coming to power. Parallel to Kuhn’s ing, education, sickness insurance, old age provision, thinking on scientific paradigms (Kuhn 1962), Hall etc., similar to what came to mark the post-World describes how a policy paradigm is embedded in the War Two welfare states. The 1953 NATO conference terminology used to communicate it. Just as a sci- epitomized this shift. entific paradigm is institutionalized in the language It is important to note that in most European that reproduces it, a policy paradigm is reproduced countries the threat of a communist or socialist through the institutions that constitute it. It is not takeover was probably never a real possibility; and until a sufficient amount of anomalies occur that it indeed, there was not broad support for communism becomes possible to critically analyse the paradigm after the invasion of Hungary in 1956. Still, a threat itself. Before that, any criticisms will be targeted to- of mass mobilisation around socialist ideology was wards constitutions within the scientific paradigm, an efficient means for “labour” to maintain the sig- not its foundation. Hall describes this in regards nificant influence. The 1960s and 1970s, despite the to policymaking, illuminating the difference be- weakening of communism, were heavily marked by tween what he terms first, second, and third order radical and revolutionary rhetoric, with persistent changes. First and second order are changes that references to the interests of the “working class” (al- “adjust policy without challenging the overall terms though often originating in the middle class) that of a given policy paradigm, much like ‘normal sci- maintained the political influence. It was not until ence’”. In contrast, third order changes are “marked the collapse of the Eastern bloc that an alternative by radical changes in the overarching terms of policy to capitalism ultimately disappeared and entirely re- discourse associated with a ‘paradigm-shift’” (Hall moved the threat potential and the possibility of us- 1993: 281ff.). ing this to achieve bargaining power and influence. Hall argues that the former Keynesian policy Inner political and ideological cohesion of the state paradigm fell victim to a third order change. In the as a precondition for external strength no longer re- post-war period, Keynes’ coherent system of ideas lied on “labour” as a defined social group. was institutionalized and applied within the fi- nancial systems around Europe, “They became the From Keynesianism to Neoliberalism prism through which policymakers saw the econo- The shift in the power balance within the state sys- my as well as their own role within it” (ibid.: 283ff.). tem – culminating in the fall of the Soviet empire However, this economic order did not, as we know, – was also pivotal to the spread of neoliberalism as sustain itself in the long run. Hall mentions three the other major transformation that comprised a implications that will be present when policy para- principal challenge to “labour”. The emergence of digm changes occur. The first is scientific opposition a neoliberal policy paradigm in the West in the late to the existing paradigm, which to some extent must 1970s contributed to a continuous weakening of the also manifest itself politically. Second, Hall points to “working class” and thus also a weakening of the the significance of authoritative figures who actually powers (unions and leftist parties) that advocated a will have the vision and power to advocate for and strong social security net and worker welfare (Bag­ begin the process of implementing the set of new po- lioni & Crouch 1990; Crouch 2013; P.A. Hall 1993; litical and economic ideas. The third implication is Rodgers 2011; Streeck 2006). the accumulation of anomalies within the old para- The analysis of the English path to neoliberalism digm, which have been dealt with unsuccessfully by political economist Peter A. Hall illuminates the through the methods prevalent in the old paradigm. processes that other European countries also under- All three conditions were present during the 1970s went. Hall enquires into the general steps whereby when neoliberalism first entered the scene in Britain. policies change and analyses how a new policy para- Anomalies – for example the simultaneous increase digm emerged in Britain in the late 1970s with Mar- in both unemployment and inflation that should not

ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 49 be possible – had accumulated during the past dec- seek to interfere with the smooth operation of the ades. Such anomalies were unsuccessfully dealt with labour market” (Crouch 2013: 18). In contrast to through ad hoc-attempts of changing, for instance, the Keynesian paradigm, in a neoliberal society the the fiscal policies, resulting in an extended distrust state does not have any ideological or instrumental of the system and paving the way for an alternative incentives to support labour organisations, as they path (ibid.: 285). In 1974, the neoliberalists Fried­ are perceived as obstacles to the flourishing of mar- rich von Hayek and Milton Friedman shared the ket forces. Nobel Prize in Economics; and with such alterna- It is relevant also to point to the disappearance of tive perceptions of the economy gaining a footing, traditional industrial workplaces in Western Europe the strong, authoritative figure of Margaret Thatch- to explain declining labour influence and the lack of er represented a viable alternative to Keynesianism identification with “the working class”. Overall, dur- when she was elected in 1979. This evolved into a ing the 1970s and 1980s, the Western industrialized fundamental fight against the labour side during the countries lost their monopoly on global surplus- 1980s, which would have been virtually unimagina- extraction. Fordist production processes became ble a few decades earlier when attention to workers’ the source of revenues in non-Western countries, demands was the top political priority as a precau- most notably in the Asian tiger economies, and tion against societal disintegration. Notably, similar this pushed the Western economies to improve occurrences took place in other European countries, knowledge-content within production to maintain although typically a few years later and in a less radi- a competitive edge, thus safeguarding an adequate cal form. individual profit margin in the market. The subse- With neoliberalism comes a whole new set of goals quent increasing fluidity of capital and spread of lib- and policy instruments that shift the political land- eral trading agreements (advocated by international scape. Several of these instruments directly impact organisations such as the WTO, established in 1995) conditions pivotal for workers’ livelihood: has increased the pace of out-sourcing, off-shoring or closures, forcing a reconfiguration of the work- Inflation replaced unemployment as the preemi- ing population (Hochschild 2016; Højrup 2017; Jul nent concern of policymakers. Macroeconomic Nielsen 2004; LiPuma & Lee 2004; Sennett 1998, efforts to reduce unemployment were rejected in 2006; Standing 2009). These economic transitions favour of balanced budgets and direct tax reduc- are important for the influence of labour but should tions. Monetary policy replaced fiscal policy as not be seen as independently working “factors”. the principal macroeconomic instrument, and it First, the presence of “classic” workplaces is not a was reoriented towards fixed targets for the rate purely economic matter. During the Keynesian era of monetary growth. Many regulatory instru- such workplaces were extensively supported by the ments associated with state intervention, such as states – well-known examples are shipyards and the incomes policies, exchange controls, and quan- mining industry. This state support was due to an titative limits on bank lending, were eliminated. inclination towards economic protectionism as well (Hall 1993) as the fear of the social unrest that would result if such companies were to close down in the face of Neoliberal ideology does not perceive the prosper- pure market forces. Without digging into the caus- ity of the “working class” as a goal or as a means. es or probable broader consequences of president Instead, it is the belief that the market forces, with Trump’s remarkable revitalization of a protectionist little or no state intervention, bring balance into the approach, this situation illuminates how economy economy and thus create the strongest and most re- is not developing per abstract laws but is politically sistant society. As Colin Crouch puts it, “neoliberals conditioned. Further, one could argue that in a way [are]… unequivocally hostile to trade unions, which Trump has merely adopted measures (and explic-

50 ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 itly aimed to give renewed influence to the working making a political support for worker welfare appear population) that were widespread until the 1980s, to be an artificial inference with mechanisms of the when they were neglected in the neoliberal political market. economy, not least (and indeed paradoxically) due to This transformation is crucial for the balance of American pressure to internationalize and liberalize the Danish flexibility model. With a continuous markets. weakening of the unions, and with the Danish left- Second, as specified above, what principally char- wing parties (in particular the Social Democratic acterizes a wageworker job is not that it is manual party) moving towards the right, there are fewer and takes place at companies with many people; it forces that oppose neoliberal initiatives.8 This pro- is that the content of the job is predefined (whether cess has revealed how a balanced flexicurity model requiring more or less skill). This is what marks the depends on strong labour representation; and that borderline to “knowledge work”, where the basic such a state of affairs requires significant political requirement is that the employee contributes unde- support. Denmark’s industrial relations have, as fined ideas and skills that provide the company with mentioned, been built upon negotiations between an innovative edge that competitors do not possess. the “independent” social partners, with the govern- Predefined jobs will always be challenged by under- ment on the side-line. And not only have the Danish pricing if they are not protected (for example by the unions traditionally been strong, with high mem- monopolization of them that unions safeguard). bership; but the state has also traditionally backed And, notably, such jobs are not disappearing. They up the unions in the negotiations, rather than the are found in large quantities throughout the labour employers, for reasons discussed previously. market: in retail, service, production, agriculture, Not surprisingly considering the transforma- construction, cleaning, health, etc. If wage and tions in the role of “labour”, this arrangement is working conditions in such occupations are left to also changing. Trade unionists, who have worked market forces, a downward spiral is unavoidable; for years in the labour movement, point to a shift just like the Danish flexicurity model’s security di- in the political inclination to support the worker mension will further diminish if not prioritized agenda over the employer agenda. In the excerpt be- politically – without proper political supports only low, a Danish union chairman, who has had a long flexibility will be left, ultimately leading to social trajectory as shipyard worker and shop-steward, fol- dumping. lowed by a career within the labour organisation, sums up the way in which the role of state, as one Danish Flexicurity in the New World Order of the “legs” in the Danish model, has undergone a Thus, a principal transformation has taken place transition. The interview was conducted in 2011 in from an overall Keynesian paradigm during the connection to an inquiry concerning the challenges Cold War period to the present neoliberal era. Dur- involved in maintaining working conditions despite ing the Cold War period, “labour” played a key role the increased influx of migrant workers from East- as a precondition for social cohesion within the ern Europe to Denmark. However, the union chair- Western world. As a consequence, workers’ organi- man more generally reflects on the transformation zations had a substantial influence on state affairs, of bargaining power despite the continued adher- which made union support a natural choice of the ence to the Danish model of tripartite negotiations. individual labourer. Following the collapse of the Eastern Bloc, neoliberal ideology and governance Even though there will be many in the labour has succeeded in setting a new agenda. As a conse- movement that will not like what I say now, ac- quence, the prevalent view since the 1990s has in- tually, the most important system [around the creasingly been that market concerns are the natural Danish model] is not the unions, it is the politi- nexus around which labour relations should revolve, cal system! It all depends on having a government

ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 51 and a state that want to play the game; because, Concluding Remarks all the same, the state has the power to play the The Danish flexicurity model has been an integral game with other cards, in case it should be neces- part of the Danish welfare regime for decades. As sary. Thus, the weakest leg in the Danish system an institution, it has won international recognition has been the employers. The employer side has for its ability to combine a capitalist labour market adapted, but has not been especially active. We with social security. The European Union has even have historically seen a correlation between the adopted it as a model that it encourages all member trade-union movement and, typically, a Social states to implement. Democratic government… well, also right-wing However, the otherwise strongly institutionalized governments… that has built up the Danish mod- model is on the verge of change as its security com- el. Those are the two legs that need to interplay: ponent has declined since the 1980s. The article ar- the trade-union movement and the political level; gues that this transformation was linked to the end if they manage to do that, then the employers will of the Cold War and the emergence of neoliberalism. adapt automatically. However, if there is no rec- Our arguments are rooted in a theoretical frame- ognition of this anymore, and much point in that work that explains the conditions of social groups direction… well, that is the deathblow to the Dan- in a society – such as the “working class” – as closely ish model. connected to external concerns of the state in ques- tion. By examining the history of “labour’s” shifting The reasoning of the trade unionist illustrates how a importance, it has been demonstrated how the in- particular consensus has been prevalent within the fluence of “labour” has relied on deliberate political Danish model. The government in power – left-wing recognition and support. This support, it is argued, as well as right-wing – has generally been in support has been connected to the potential threat to the so- of the unions, arguably, we could add, as a result cial order that “labour” represented. of the shared consensus about preventing “labour” Looking at the Danish flexicurity model in light from turning against the social order. Since the end of the above, the decline in the security dimension of the 1980s, however, with the spread of neoliberal could be expected. The goal of unemployment bene­ ideology, the legitimacy of the (red) trade unions has fits – namely that people can maintain relatively increasingly been questioned; and the monopolistic high living standards despite unemployment – be- features of the unionized system have been found to comes less valid discursively in a neoliberal para- be too restrictive for a sound economy. digm. Looking ahead, impacts of this development The unions’ legitimacy as the institutions that are dismal. The more the protection against market represent workers has thus suffered a hard blow; and fluctuations is regarded as an individual challenge it is disclosed that their former strength relied on (perhaps moderated by, politically sensible, active political support “from above”. That they are treated labour market policies) and political support to the today as an obstacle to a smoothly running economy collectivism that the unions represent continues is not the result of new political insight but rather to decline, the risk is not only a race to the bottom of the disappearance of “labour” as a political pri- but also that the individual worker cease to regard ority. Moreover, the declining membership (which, him- or herself as a valued community member and as shown, is also connected to these changes) put citizen. The social dissatisfaction that follows from the unions in a continuously weaker bargaining this will, however, not come in the form of a uni- position, which has made results more difficult to fied labour movement (lacking its previous support), achieve – this making future support from the indi- but rather, as can be observed across Europe (Brexit vidual worker less obvious. being a more recent example of that), materialize as frustration, disintegration, and in support for right- wing nationalism with its supposed protection of the

52 ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 “little man” against globalization. The only way to omizing the attention to workers as crucial for West- ern survival: “We fight Russian communism on three prevent this development is deliberate political sup- fronts: The military, the economic, and the ideologi- port for the security dimension in today’s labour cal. The working class is key to the two latter. If we lose market. there, we will not prevail at the military front” (Boel 1999:99; translated from Danish). 8 In Denmark during the 1990s, social democratic gov- Notes ernments carried out most of the retrenchments of the 1 Six dimensions have been assigned to the Danish mod- unemployment benefits (Mailand 2010). The social el: high levels of organization with high coverage of democratic opposition did not manage to stop the re- collective agreements; nationally coordinated collec- trenchments of the benefits in 2010 or effectively roll tive bargaining; a coordinated multi-level system; con- back the reform when elected to govern in 2011. flict and consensus; voluntarism implying autonomy with limited legal regulation; coordination between the system of negotiation and the political system (Due References & Madsen 2006; Larsen & Ilsøe 2016). Ambjörnsson, R. 1988: Den skötsamme arbetaren: Idéer och 2 Flexicurity as a label originated in Holland in 1995 as a ideal i ett norrländskt sågverkssamhälle 1880–1930. Stock- political initiative to increase the flexibility of atypical holm: Carlsson. types of employment and the security of the atypically Andersen, S.K. 2007: Vikarer mellem fleksibilitet og sikker- employed (Andersen 2007; Crouch 2016: 192). Like- hed. Tidsskrift for Arbejdsliv 4:9, november 2007, 63–78. wise, the Danish Model as a label first originated in the Andersen, S.K. & J. Arnholz 2007: Hovedresultater fra pro- 1990s (Due, Madsen & Jensen 1993). jektet: Østeuropæiske arbejdere i bygge- og anlægsbran- 3 The concept of flexicurity does not have a universal chen. Forskningsnotat 83. Copenhagen: Faos. definition. There is a multitude of variations of the Andersen, S.K. & J. Felbo-Kolding 2013: Danske virksomhe- term which are outlined in Wilthagen’s so-called flexi- ders brug af østeuropæisk arbejdskraft. Copenhagen: Faos. curity-matrice (Bredgaard & Kongshøj Madsen 2015). Andersen, S.K. & B. Hansen 2007: Mindsteløn i Europa. Co- 4 It is important to note that if the security component penhagen: Faos. of the flexicurity model is removed (or drastically Andersen, S.K. & M. Mailand 2005: The Danish Flexicurity retrenched) it may also damage the flexibility, as in- model: The Role of the Collective Bargaining System. Co- creased insecurity may force the unions to demand penhagen: Faos. employment protection in the form of, for instance, Andersen, S.K., M. Mailand & C.L. Ibsen 2012: Den danske redundancy payments. model i modvind. Copenhagen: Faos. 5 See chapter “‘The making…’ – af et begreb og en histo- Andersen, S.K. & K. Pedersen 2007: Østaftalen: Individuelle rie” [“‘The making…’ – of a concept and a history”] in østarbejdere. 1. delrapport. Copenhagen: Faos. Nielsen 2002: 46–49. Andreß, H.J. & H. Lohmann 2008: The Working Poor in Eu- 6 Documents from the conference are kept at the Danish rope: Employment, Poverty and Globalization. Cornwall: labour archive (Jul Nielsen 2004). The present excerpt Edward Elgar Ltd. is translated from Danish: “at skabe den størst mulige Baglioni, G. & C. Crouch 1990: European Industrial relations: gensidige forståelse og solidaritet mellem NATO-lan- The Challenge of Flexibility. London & Newbury Park: denes folk... NATO (skal gøres til) et effektivt udtryk Sage Publications. for medlemslandenes fællesskab ikke blot på det mili- Berlanstein, L.R. 1993: Rethinking Labor History: Essays on tære, men i lige så høj grad på de civile områder, der Discourse and Class Analysis. Urbana: University of Illinois berører politiske, økonomiske og sociale problemer in- Press. denfor landene. ... et militært forsvar i sig selv er ikke Boel, B. 1999: USA, EPA og vesteuropisk fagforeningspolitik nok til i det lange løb at forsvare den livsform, der er det i 1950’erne. Arbejderhistorie: Tidsskrift for historie, kultur vestlige demokratis”. The following excerpts – which og politik 4, 99–111. are in US English in the original – also stem from this Boris, E. & A. Janssens 1999: Complicating Categories Gender, archive, unless otherwise stated. Class, Race and Ethnicity. Cambridge: Cambridge Univer- 7 The conclusions at the 1953 NATO conference in Co- sity Press. penhagen resemble the general American comprehen- Boserup, A. 1986: Staten, samfundet og krigen hos Clause- sion of the situation in the post-war years. In another witz. In: N. Berg (ed.), Carl von Clausewitz. Om Krig. Bd context (within the “Labor Program of the Mutual III: Kommentar og registre, 911–930. Copenhagen: Rhodos. Security Agency”, established after the Second World Boserup, A. & A. Mack 1971: Ikke-vold som nationalforsvar. War), a similar understanding is revealed, again epit- Copenhagen: Spektrum.

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ETHNOLOGIA EUROPAEA 47:2 55 Niels Jul Nielsen, Ph.D., is an associate professor of Ethnolo- Janus Jul Olsen has an M.A. in Public Management and So- gy at the Saxo Institute, University of Copenhagen. Research cial Development from Copenhagen Business School, Den- themes are cultures of labour and work from the nineteenth mark, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Sino-Danish century until today, at present with a focus on migration Center). His research themes have revolved around the inter- and the volatility of capitalism. His research is currently linkages between state policies, economic developments and undertaken within the collaborative project Neoculturation subjectivation processes, with a comparative focus on China of Life-Modes during the Current Transformation of State and Western Europe. Currently he is working as a manage- System and World Economy (lifemodes.ku.dk). ment consultant in Denmark. ([email protected]) ([email protected] )

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