The pension system reform in the various European countries has been at the forefront of the political and scientific debate for years. The necessity to face the new social-economic context has led to the introduction of new measures for the reorganisation of institutions. To promote widespread discussion on legislative innovations already introduced and on prospects for further commitment for the modernisation of pension systems, the seminar held in Brussels on 23-24 June 2005, entitled «Pension Policies and European Social Model» organised by Inca, Cgil and Ferpa (European Federation for the Elderly and Pensioners) with the collaboration of the Observatoire Social Européen, stimulated a debate between experts and social partners. Two papers presented at the seminar are published here. The first by David Natali deals specifically with these themes and took inspiration from the recent Green Paper on demographic changes published by the European Commission; the second paper reflects on the seminar proceedings. only subscribers can see the full article

The Protocol on pensions, jobs and competition of 23 July 2007 is certainly one of the most important agreements between government and social partners in recent years, for its farrangingness and for the debate it has set off in public opinion. This is partly due to the significant involvement of workers in the referendum held on the text, as well as the high percentage of approval for its solutions. In method and solutions it provides an opportunity to analyse how consultation has developed and how it stands on an essentially bipolar political scene, and to verify the state of health of Italy’s welfare system in an age of epoch-making challenges such as globalisation and the ageing of the population. The article examines the structure of the protocol in relation to the pensions system, the regulation of labour relations and the labour market, and the competitiveness of the system.only subscribers can see the full article