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Dear Colleagues, we are very pleased to announce two new publications in the RECWOWE *Working Papers on the Reconciliation of Work and Welfare in Europe* series. > REC-WP 03/10 > Alexander Goerne > The Capability Approach in social policy analysis. Yet another concept? > downloadable at http://www.socialpolicy.ed.ac.uk/recwowepudisc/working_papers/rec-wp_03_10 > REC-WP 04/10 > Magdalena Bernaciak, Anil Duman, Vera Scepanovic > Employee welfare and collective Bargaining in exposed and protected sectors: Evidence from Poland and Serbia. > downloadable at http://www.socialpolicy.ed.ac.uk/recwowepudisc/working_papers/rec-wp_04_10 > For further details on all previously published working papers, and for information on how to submit a manuscript yourself, please visit the series website at http://www.socialpolicy.ed.ac.uk/recwowepudisc/working_papers/introduction > For more details on the papers REC-WP 03/10 and REC-WP 03/10, please read on: > >>> Abstract REC-WP 03/10 > Alexander Goerne: The Capability Approach in social policy analysis. Yet another concept? > There is still some lack of clarity regarding the question of what the Capability Approach actually is, how it should be interpreted and operationalised, and not least whether it is an adequate and useful concept for the analysis of social policy in Europe. Against the backdrop of these questions, this paper looks at recent contributions which use the Capability Approach (CA) for analysing social policy. This leads me to argue that the most interesting applications of the CA may not lie in policy evaluation in the classical sense, but rather in an analysis of policy outputs through the lens of concepts such as individualisation and diversity. In this sense, the CA may serve as normative foundation for addressing the dependent variable problem in comparative welfare regime research. In order to play this role, however, CA-applications will need to clearly differentiate between the potential and implications of the CA itself, and various external normative reference points which should not be identified with the CA. > >>> Abstract REC-WP 04/10 > Magdalena Bernaciak, Anil Duman, Vera Scepanovic: Employee welfare and collective Bargaining in exposed and protected sectors: Evidence from Poland and Serbia. Collective bargaining is closely related to social policy making to the extent that the outcomes of the former inform and influence social policy agenda. It is widely held, however, that trade unions in Central Eastern Europe (CEE) do not have a strong bargaining position and thus exert little impact on policy decisions. This paper challenges the view of CEE labour as a uniformly weak actor. It argues that CEE unions’ ability to shape the bargaining agenda and social policies depends largely on the degree of privatisation, which overlaps with sectoral divisions. We find that unions in exposed sectors are unable to oppose greater flexibility even when there are no considerable wage gains, whereas workers in protected sectors manage to maintain their status and at times even enhance their welfare, both in terms of higher wages and better working conditions. Best wishes > Daniel Clegg and Alexander Goerne -- Alexander Goerne School of Social and Political Studies University of Edinburgh Chrystal Macmillan Building, Room 3.01 15A George Square EH8 9LD Edinburgh Scotland, UK phone: 0044 131 651 3180 mail: [log in to unmask]