Short description The Times They Are Changing? presents a series of readings that critically examine whether the recent financial crisis will have short-lived implications for welfare states or will usher in a new era of substantial reform and retrenchment of social policies in welfare states around the world. Contributors include policy researchers and academics from several countries in Western Europe, as well as the South Pacific and USA. Various national and regional case studies reveal the profound impact the financial crisis is having on policies implemented by welfare states as well as on our perceptions of the welfare state as a concept.
From the contents Editorial Introduction: Overview and Conclusion 1. To What Extent Did the Financial Crisis Intensify the Pressure to Reform the Welfare State? 2. Falling Back on Old Habits? A Comparison of the Social and Unemployment Crisis Reactive Policy Strategies in Germany, the UK and Sweden 3. The Impact of the Crisis on Australian Social Security Policy in Historical Perspective 4. US Social Policy in the 21st Century: The Difficulties of Comprehensive Social Reform 5. Economic Crisis and Welfare Retrenchment: Comparing Irish Policy Responses in the 1970s and 1980s with the Present 6. Crisis and Welfare State Change in the Netherlands 7. Explaining Welfare Reforms in Italy between Economy and Politics 8. The Economic Crisis as a Trigger of Convergence? Short-time Work in Italy, Germany and Austria 9. Health Care Policy for Better or for Worse? Examining NHS Reforms During Times of Economic Crisis versus Relative Stability Index
