Book Review: Pension Trajectories in the Western Balkans. Three Case Studies: Albania, Macedonia and Kosovo
| Date | 01 September 2012 |
| Published date | 01 September 2012 |
| DOI | 10.1177/138826271201400306 |
| Author | Emanuel Emil Coman |
| Subject Matter | Book Review |
to the author, there is a need for stronger legal instruments such as Directives, for
instance on minimum protection by means of subsistence benefi ts, and the European
Commission is asked to undertake an analysis of the extent to which Member States
satisfy relevant international standards such as those of ILO Convention No. 102, and
then to study what measures are needed to satisfy these conditions. However, it seems
doubtful at the time of writing (summer 2012) that such a proposal for harmonisation
initiatives will be made, as any such policy would confl ict with the consequences of
the fi nancial crisis, particularly for the Member States of the so-called ‘southern rim’
of Europe, i.e. Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain. It may well be that in a sixth edition
of this outstanding handbook the author will have to deal with the impact of the
austerity measures taken in these Member States on social security and social policy
within the EU as a whole.
Th
e bibliography at the end of the book refers to the most important literature on
EU Social Law. Th
ere is also a comprehensive index − from Unger (1964) to Leyman
(2009) − on the relevant case law of the European Court of Justice (ECJ), which is
extremely useful, as the jurisprudence of the ECJ rightly occupies a central place in
this publication. Finally, there is also an equally useful subject index.
Th
e book is extremely rewarding and easy (given the complexity of the subject)
to read, and it will be of great interest and utility, not only for EU law and social
security scholars, teachers and students in social policy and social security but, more
generally, to everyone concerned with European social security: politicians, public
administrators, personnel of social security administrations, representatives of the
social partners, i.e. trade unions and employers’ associations, social security and
labour lawyers.
Bernd Schulte
Munich
Dr. Bernd Schulte was a Research Fellow at the Max Planck...
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