I am Associate Professor in Business and Public Policy at the University of Roskilde, Department of Social Science and Business, and currently work on political responses to corporate tax avoidance.
Videoabstract zu einem Working Paper zur Wirtschaftskammer Österreich (ca 74 Sekunden).
Der Beit... more Videoabstract zu einem Working Paper zur Wirtschaftskammer Österreich (ca 74 Sekunden).
This video gives an overview of my ongoing research on the international regulation of profit shi... more This video gives an overview of my ongoing research on the international regulation of profit shifting.
Studies inspired by the varieties of capitalism (VoC) approach suggest that in coordinated market... more Studies inspired by the varieties of capitalism (VoC) approach suggest that in coordinated market economies, some employer associations support public social policies to encourage the workforce to invest in company and industry-specific skills (VoC thesis). Yet the VoC thesis remains disputed. We present and assess an alternative thesis that builds on employers’ interest in the protection of labor supply (labor supply thesis). We test the labor supply thesis using a systematic content analysis of 370 press releases issued from 2002 to 2017 and find evidence of moderate employer support for more labor-activating social policies and less labor-protective social policies. Moreover, the analysis shows a decline in preference heterogeneity, with the positions of the four German employer associations converging toward the end of the period analyzed. Our findings have theoretical and methodological implications: First, they point to the relevance of labor supply as a source of employers’ social policy preferences. Second, they point to the need for a more systematic measurement of employer policy positions to be able to compare positions accurately.
Dieses Kapitel gibt einen Uberblick uber Beitrage des „Varieties of Capitalism“ Ansatzes zur Sozi... more Dieses Kapitel gibt einen Uberblick uber Beitrage des „Varieties of Capitalism“ Ansatzes zur Sozialpolitikforschung. Der „Varieties of Capitalism“ Ansatz inspirierte die Bildung neuer Thesen in zwei Bereichen: (a) Thesen zu den Auswirkungen staatlicher Sozialpolitik auf industrielle Produktion und Qualifikationssysteme; und (b) Thesen zu den politischen Grundlagen von Sozialpolitik, mit Fokus auf die Praferenzen von Arbeitgebern und auf Klassenallianzen. Das Kapitel evaluiert die empirische Evidenz fur diese Thesen auf Basis der Forschungsliteratur. Die Literatur wird unterteilt in Studien zur historischen Entstehung des Sozialstaats und Studien zur Reformpolitik seit den 1980ern.
ABSTRACT Unternehmen sind von Sozialpolitik oft direkt betroffen, am deutlichsten wohl durch dere... more ABSTRACT Unternehmen sind von Sozialpolitik oft direkt betroffen, am deutlichsten wohl durch deren Auswirkungen auf die Lohnkosten. Es liegt daher nahe, dass sich Unternehmen zu Verbänden zusammenschließen, um ihre sozialpolitischen Zielvorstellungen zu artikulieren und politische Entscheidungsfindungsprozesse zu beeinflussen. Bereits seit Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts organisierten sich Unternehmen, vorwiegend aus der Industrie, in Deutschland in Verbänden, um ihre Interessen im Bereich der Sozialpolitik zu vertreten. Diese Rolle wird in Deutschland in erster Linie von den Arbeitgeberverbänden erfüllt. Ziel dieses Beitrags ist es, einen Überblick über die Rolle der Arbeitgeberverbände in der Sozialpolitik in Deutschland zu geben. Nach einer kurzen Darstellung der Organisationsstrukturen und Funktionen der Arbeitgeberverbände in Deutschland in den Abschnitten 2 und 3 beschäftigt sich der Beitrag mit theoretischen Debatten zur Rolle der Arbeitgeber in der Sozialpolitik (Abschnitte 4 und 5) sowie anschließend mit der Rolle der Arbeitgeber bei der Entwicklung des deutschen Sozialstaats von den 1880er Jahren bis heute (Abschnitt 6).
This chapter focuses on the reforms adopting the main social insurance programs: sickness insuran... more This chapter focuses on the reforms adopting the main social insurance programs: sickness insurance, work injury insurance, old-age and disability pensions, and unemployment insurance, as well as reforms after 1945 expanding the generosity of old-age pensions. It shows that differences in the impact on work incentives best explain variation in employers’ acceptance of various social programs. With regard to administrative organization of social programs, employers’ positions changed over time: from opponents to strong supporters of corporatism. Opinions within the German business community on the benefits of the work injury insurance and the other social programs were diverse, but the dominant organizations backed the reforms. Social policy reforms in the post-war period can be divided into two distinct periods: the period of the reconstitution of the Bismarckian social insurance programs after the war, and the period of expansion of social programs during the 1950s. A division of labor exists between the various types and levels of business interest associations in Germany.Based on parts of EUI PhD thesis, 200
Studies inspired by the varieties of capitalism (VoC) approach suggest that in coordinated market... more Studies inspired by the varieties of capitalism (VoC) approach suggest that in coordinated market economies, some employer associations support public social policies to encourage the workforce to invest in company and industry-specific skills (VoC thesis). Yet the VoC thesis remains disputed. We present and assess an alternative thesis that builds on employers’ interest in the protection of labor supply (labor supply thesis). We test the labor supply thesis using a systematic content analysis of 370 press releases issued from 2002 to 2017 and find evidence of moderate employer support for more labor-activating social policies and less labor-protective social policies. Moreover, the analysis shows a decline in preference heterogeneity, with the positions of the four German employer associations converging toward the end of the period analyzed. Our findings have theoretical and methodological implications: First, they point to the relevance of labor supply as a source of employers’ s...
Videoabstract zu einem Working Paper zur Wirtschaftskammer Österreich (ca 74 Sekunden).
Der Beit... more Videoabstract zu einem Working Paper zur Wirtschaftskammer Österreich (ca 74 Sekunden).
This video gives an overview of my ongoing research on the international regulation of profit shi... more This video gives an overview of my ongoing research on the international regulation of profit shifting.
Studies inspired by the varieties of capitalism (VoC) approach suggest that in coordinated market... more Studies inspired by the varieties of capitalism (VoC) approach suggest that in coordinated market economies, some employer associations support public social policies to encourage the workforce to invest in company and industry-specific skills (VoC thesis). Yet the VoC thesis remains disputed. We present and assess an alternative thesis that builds on employers’ interest in the protection of labor supply (labor supply thesis). We test the labor supply thesis using a systematic content analysis of 370 press releases issued from 2002 to 2017 and find evidence of moderate employer support for more labor-activating social policies and less labor-protective social policies. Moreover, the analysis shows a decline in preference heterogeneity, with the positions of the four German employer associations converging toward the end of the period analyzed. Our findings have theoretical and methodological implications: First, they point to the relevance of labor supply as a source of employers’ social policy preferences. Second, they point to the need for a more systematic measurement of employer policy positions to be able to compare positions accurately.
Dieses Kapitel gibt einen Uberblick uber Beitrage des „Varieties of Capitalism“ Ansatzes zur Sozi... more Dieses Kapitel gibt einen Uberblick uber Beitrage des „Varieties of Capitalism“ Ansatzes zur Sozialpolitikforschung. Der „Varieties of Capitalism“ Ansatz inspirierte die Bildung neuer Thesen in zwei Bereichen: (a) Thesen zu den Auswirkungen staatlicher Sozialpolitik auf industrielle Produktion und Qualifikationssysteme; und (b) Thesen zu den politischen Grundlagen von Sozialpolitik, mit Fokus auf die Praferenzen von Arbeitgebern und auf Klassenallianzen. Das Kapitel evaluiert die empirische Evidenz fur diese Thesen auf Basis der Forschungsliteratur. Die Literatur wird unterteilt in Studien zur historischen Entstehung des Sozialstaats und Studien zur Reformpolitik seit den 1980ern.
ABSTRACT Unternehmen sind von Sozialpolitik oft direkt betroffen, am deutlichsten wohl durch dere... more ABSTRACT Unternehmen sind von Sozialpolitik oft direkt betroffen, am deutlichsten wohl durch deren Auswirkungen auf die Lohnkosten. Es liegt daher nahe, dass sich Unternehmen zu Verbänden zusammenschließen, um ihre sozialpolitischen Zielvorstellungen zu artikulieren und politische Entscheidungsfindungsprozesse zu beeinflussen. Bereits seit Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts organisierten sich Unternehmen, vorwiegend aus der Industrie, in Deutschland in Verbänden, um ihre Interessen im Bereich der Sozialpolitik zu vertreten. Diese Rolle wird in Deutschland in erster Linie von den Arbeitgeberverbänden erfüllt. Ziel dieses Beitrags ist es, einen Überblick über die Rolle der Arbeitgeberverbände in der Sozialpolitik in Deutschland zu geben. Nach einer kurzen Darstellung der Organisationsstrukturen und Funktionen der Arbeitgeberverbände in Deutschland in den Abschnitten 2 und 3 beschäftigt sich der Beitrag mit theoretischen Debatten zur Rolle der Arbeitgeber in der Sozialpolitik (Abschnitte 4 und 5) sowie anschließend mit der Rolle der Arbeitgeber bei der Entwicklung des deutschen Sozialstaats von den 1880er Jahren bis heute (Abschnitt 6).
This chapter focuses on the reforms adopting the main social insurance programs: sickness insuran... more This chapter focuses on the reforms adopting the main social insurance programs: sickness insurance, work injury insurance, old-age and disability pensions, and unemployment insurance, as well as reforms after 1945 expanding the generosity of old-age pensions. It shows that differences in the impact on work incentives best explain variation in employers’ acceptance of various social programs. With regard to administrative organization of social programs, employers’ positions changed over time: from opponents to strong supporters of corporatism. Opinions within the German business community on the benefits of the work injury insurance and the other social programs were diverse, but the dominant organizations backed the reforms. Social policy reforms in the post-war period can be divided into two distinct periods: the period of the reconstitution of the Bismarckian social insurance programs after the war, and the period of expansion of social programs during the 1950s. A division of labor exists between the various types and levels of business interest associations in Germany.Based on parts of EUI PhD thesis, 200
Studies inspired by the varieties of capitalism (VoC) approach suggest that in coordinated market... more Studies inspired by the varieties of capitalism (VoC) approach suggest that in coordinated market economies, some employer associations support public social policies to encourage the workforce to invest in company and industry-specific skills (VoC thesis). Yet the VoC thesis remains disputed. We present and assess an alternative thesis that builds on employers’ interest in the protection of labor supply (labor supply thesis). We test the labor supply thesis using a systematic content analysis of 370 press releases issued from 2002 to 2017 and find evidence of moderate employer support for more labor-activating social policies and less labor-protective social policies. Moreover, the analysis shows a decline in preference heterogeneity, with the positions of the four German employer associations converging toward the end of the period analyzed. Our findings have theoretical and methodological implications: First, they point to the relevance of labor supply as a source of employers’ s...
Public social benefits can, depending on their design, either reduce or strengthen work incentive... more Public social benefits can, depending on their design, either reduce or strengthen work incentives. Benefits that provide an alternative to earned income weaken work incentives, benefits that require recipients to seek and accept work strengthen them. On the basis of six historical case studies, this paper analyses how the peak federations of German employers perceived the impact of public social programs on work incentives and how these perceptions changed over time. The paper shows how employers' assessments of the importance of work incentives changed over time: They perceived the negative work incentives created by social programs either as positive or as negative, depending on labor market conditions and experiences with social programs made in earlier periods. During the debates leading to the adoption of new social insurance programs, employers feared that the new benefits would undermine work incentives when those programs would benefit persons fit to work, but not when programs would benefit the sick or injured. Consequently, unemployment insurance was the program employers opposed most strongly. Later, during the 1970s and 1980s, when firms faced over-staffing, employers did however come to welcome a weakening of work incentives.
Public social benefits can, depending on their design, either reduce or strengthen work incentive... more Public social benefits can, depending on their design, either reduce or strengthen work incentives. Benefits that provide an alternative to earned income weaken work incentives, benefits that require recipients to seek and accept work strengthen them. On the basis of six historical case studies, this paper analyses how the peak federations of German employers perceived the impact of public social programs on work incentives and how these perceptions changed over time. The paper shows how employers' assessments of the importance of work incentives changed over time: They perceived the negative work incentives created by social programs either as positive or as negative, depending on labor market conditions and experiences with social programs made in earlier periods. During the debates leading to the adoption of new social insurance programs, employers feared that the new benefits would undermine work incentives when those programs would benefit persons fit to work, but not when programs would benefit the sick or injured. Consequently, unemployment insurance was the program employers opposed most strongly. Later, during the 1970s and 1980s, when firms faced over-staffing, employers did however come to welcome a weakening of work incentives.
Multinationale Unternehmen haben viele Möglichkeiten ihre Steuerzahlungen zu minimieren. Dieses P... more Multinationale Unternehmen haben viele Möglichkeiten ihre Steuerzahlungen zu minimieren. Dieses Policy Briefing stellt die gängigsten Methoden vor welche Unternehmen zur Steuervermeidung einsetzen. Außerdem stellt der Text bestehende Reforminitiativen der G20, der OECD, und der EU gegen Steuervermeidung vor, und präsentiert Vorschläge für eine wirkungsvollere Bekämpfung von Steuervermeidung durch Unternehmen.
This paper analyses government responsiveness to business demands for tax cuts, using case studie... more This paper analyses government responsiveness to business demands for tax cuts, using case studies of reforms of corporate taxes and inheritance taxes in Austria and Sweden. We find a high level of government responsiveness in both policy fields, but much higher responsiveness on inheritance tax. We argue that this difference between the two policy fields is the result of an effort by governments to balance three conflicting goals: (i) attracting investments, (ii) maintaining a high level of tax revenues, (iii) and maintaining electoral popularity. The intensity of these goal conflicts varied between the two policy fields. It was higher on corporate taxation, which led governments to combine cuts to corporate tax with compensatory measures, the abolition of inheritance tax in both countries was not combined with compensatory measures, because goal conflicts were low. We show that differences in the expected electoral and fiscal impacts of reforms explain the different levels of government responsiveness. Government efforts to reconcile the three policy goals under conditions of heightened business power entailed sacrificing redistributive goals that have characterized tax policies in earlier periods.
This paper introduces Schumpeter’s views on the relationship between business and politics and ar... more This paper introduces Schumpeter’s views on the relationship between business and politics and argues that we can discern a distinct Schumpeterian perspective of business-politics relations. Schumpeter’s views about the pivotal role of entrepreneurs in economic development attracted substantial interest in economic sociology and in political economy. His views about the role of entrepreneurs in politics have so far however hardly been studied. The paper identifies the following four aspects as central to Schumpeter’s perspective of business-politics relations: (a) entrepreneurs and corporations drive economic change, (b) entrepreneurs and corporations are ineffective in defending their political interests and vulnerable to hostile movements, (c) the resulting divergence of the economic and the political impact of entrepreneurs and corporations makes capitalism socio-politically instable, and (d) the relationship of entrepreneurs and corporations to political institutions and public policies is primarily adaptive, rather than causative. The paper proposes a two-dimensional typology of business-politics relations that combines the Schumpeterian focus on adaptation with the Marxian focus on influence. These two dimensions - adaptation and influence - result in four ideal types: business-dominated social compromise, imposed social compromise, business dominance, and political confrontation. Examples from German welfare state history illustrate these four types. The paper suggests that the Schumpeterian and the Marxian perspective, while in contrast to each other, may be complementary and each perspective valid under different socio-political conditions.
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Der Beitrag ist hier verfügbar:
https://www.jku.at/institut-fuer-soziologie/forschung/arbeitskreis-sozialpartnerschaft/
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Der Beitrag ist hier verfügbar:
https://www.jku.at/institut-fuer-soziologie/forschung/arbeitskreis-sozialpartnerschaft/