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The Lamfalussy process was implemented from early 2001, following the report of the Committee of Wise Men on the Regulation of European Securities Markets, chaired by Alexandre Lamfalussy. Four years on, this paper concludes that, while it is too early to assess progress in areas such as implementation and enforcement (Levels 3 and 4 of the Lamfalussy process), significant progress has been made in implementing the proposals contained in the original Lamfalussy Report. Preparation of EU legislation affecting securities markets is now more transparent, with better involvement of external stakeholders and enhanced political cooperation between all the institutions (Commission, Council and European Parliament). This has resulted in an improvement in the quality of legislation and an acceleration of the legislative process. The use of implementing measures will make it easier and faster to adapt Community legislation in the future. The process is also encouraging regulatory and supervisory convergence. Nevertheless, this paper suggests further improvements that could be made in areas such as consultation, including better involvement of consumers; timetables for transposing measures into national law; focusing more on general rules and principles in framework legislation (Level 1) and avoiding over‐prescription in implementing measures (Level 2); achieving more consistent implementation across member states (Level 3); further strengthening political accountability; and strengthening efforts to foster greater understanding of the Lamfalussy process.

Occupational injury in the health care sector in the United States rates among the highest of all industries. Specific to hospital support service workers (e.g., Food & Nutrition, Environmental Services), studies have shown that injury rates for support service workers tend to be among the highest of hospital personnel, and yet there is a shortage of research investigating the safety climate of these workers. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine safety perceptions of support service workers. Surveys were used to measure safety climate leadership factors (per the AHRQ's Survey of Patient Safety Culture) to determine if they are related to individual safety perceptions, as well as ratings of work unit safety. Following established safety climate research, we examined the role of the work environment (e.g., supervisor support and work unit culture) on safety perceptions. We found that both supervisor and organizational safety leadership are positively related to individual safety perceptions and supervisor support. Organizational safety leadership and work unit culture were positively related to work unit safety rating. Our findings demonstrate that the antecedent factors and pathways that promote a positive safety climate among health care providers functions in a similar manner for support service workers. These findings contribute to a better understanding of occupational safety of this understudied work group and provide evidence to hospital administration that developing a strong safety climate among support service workers is not entirely different from what is required to promote a robust safety climate across an organization.

This paper was prepared for presentation to the workshop on ‘The Developing EU — Institutional Changes and Enlargement’ at the Fifth International Public Relations Research Symposium, Bled, 10th–12th July, 1998. The paper presents an analysis and description of non‐governmental organisations (NGOs) represented by offices in Brussels in the form of both alliances and groups. It looks at the NGOs' role in EU policy formation, environmental activists, consumers', human and citizens' rights, animal welfare and the implications for public affairs.

A sample of twenty‐six Mexican and fifty‐nine Canadian equities listed on the New York Stock Exchange are examined to determine whether these foreign equities outperform the S&P 500 as a result of the North American Free Trade Agreement of 1994. Data are tested for significant differences in performance before and after the introduction of NAFTA during the period 1980‐2000. Findings show no significant post‐NAFTAdifference in the three‐year performance of the Mexican equities. However, the post‐NAFTA sample of Canadian equities significantly outperformed the S&P 500 by 28.8 percent, perhaps suggesting a NAFTA‐related wealth effect for the Canadian firms.

Schooling expansion is typically operationalized as the proportion of the population attending and the number of years attained; however, expansion can also be examined through new fields of study. Early childhood education entered the university as occupational training and has grown into a legitimate field of study. For example, an analysis of the expansion of early childhood papers and topics in scientific journal articles shows a slow steady rise before a dramatic increase in the 1956–2021 time period. The expansion of early childhood education as a field has been synergistic with the process of academization. Training in the occupation of early childhood education started first in its country of origin and then moved to independent training programs and normal schools in the United States before landing in four-year institutions that include everything from small colleges to large universities.

Advanced education is often thought to respond to the demands of the economy, market forces create new occupations, and then universities respond with new degrees and curricula aimed at training future workers with specific new skills. Presented here is comparative research on an underappreciated, yet growing, concurrent alternative process: universities, with their global growth in numbers and enrollments, in concert with expanding research capacity, create and privilege knowledge and skills, legitimate new degrees that then become monetized and even required in private and public sectors of economies. A process referred to as academization of occupations has far-reaching implications for understanding the transformation of capitalism, new dimensions of social inequality, and resulting stratification among occupations. Academization is also eclipsing the more limited professionalization processes in occupations. Additionally, it fuels further expansion of advanced education and contributes to a new culture of work in the 21st century. Commissioned detailed German and US case studies of the university origins and influence on workplace consequences of seven selected occupations and associated knowledge, skills, and degrees investigate the academization process. And to demonstrate how universal this could become, the cases contrast the more open and less-restrictive education and occupation system in the US with the centralized and state-controlled education system in Germany. With expected variation, both economies and their occupational systems show evidence of robust academization. Importantly too is evidence of academic transformations of understandings about approaches to job tasks and use of authoritative knowledge in occupational activities.

In light of the data economy, data protection law is a key legal element for being able to leverage data-driven innovation and is often regarded as a limitation for businesses and service design. Contrasting this traditional view, this chapter argues why designing with privacy in mind is a win-win situation, not only, but especially in the context of data-based services. On the backdrop of new regulations around the globe setting incentives, we show how research in the domain of usable privacy can be leveraged to embed innovative privacy features for customers into digital services as competitive advantage. Building upon these insights, we argue that a well-designed privacy and/or data protection process should be a key element for customer experience management.

Many jurisdictions fine illegal cartels using penalty guidelines that presume an arbitrary 10% overcharge. This article surveys more than 700 published economic studies and judicial decisions that contain 2,041 quantitative estimates of overcharges of hard-core cartels. The primary findings are: (1) the median average long-run overcharge for all types of cartels over all time periods is 23.0%; (2) the mean average is at least 49%; (3) overcharges reached their zenith in 1891–1945 and have trended downward ever since; (4) 6% of the cartel episodes are zero; (5) median overcharges of international-membership cartels are 38% higher than those of domestic cartels; (6) convicted cartels are on average 19% more effective at raising prices as unpunished cartels; (7) bid-rigging conduct displays 25% lower markups than price-fixing cartels; (8) contemporary cartels targeted by class actions have higher overcharges; and (9) when cartels operate at peak effectiveness, price changes are 60–80% higher than the whole episode. Historical penalty guidelines aimed at optimally deterring cartels are likely to be too low.