Navigating Complexity: Case Studies on International Policy-Making in a Context of Global Instability

The Fourth Industrial Revolution has radically reshaped the world of work and has introduced new economic challenges which are still unaddressed. The purpose of this proposal is to analyse how dual employment protection legislation (EPL) is reacting to these pressing changes from three different approaches. Firstly, an assessment of how well dual EPL provides the flexibility needed by firms and security demanded by workers in this new context. Recent advances in information technology makes the matching between demand and supply instantaneous. The recent surge in nonstandard contract modalities seems to show that firms are trying to do the same type of matching between their workforce and the duration of contracts offered. Is dual EPL more successful in providing flexibility rather than security? Secondly, an analysis of how dual EPL affects agent employers’ incentives when making investment decisions. Is dual EPL providing incentives to shift the allocation of physical and human capital toward activities with have little added value? We will also analyse the implications on the economic structure and sectoral composition of the countries by considering a new approach: aggregate demand and drivers of growth. Thirdly, an evaluation of how the increasing use of non-standard contracts is affecting government income and expenditure and how this practice may affect the viability of the social security system.