The Jobs Strategy: From neo- to inclusive liberalism?

This paper focuses on the OECD's Strategy, which became a principal means for the OECD to promote a neo-liberal model of social and employment policy to its member states and it also influenced the European Union's employment strategy. Yet important modifications were introduced in 2006 with the recognition of an alternative policy path, 'flexicurity.' While the latter accepted neoliberal macroeconomic 'fundamentals,' it broke with neoliberalism to the extent that it recognized a positive role for labour market regulations and social policies in promoting security and social inclusion. The paper analyses the politics associated with this shift, using the concept of 'organisational discourse' to get at the dynamic (and contested) nature of the OECD's ideational lens. While the OECD came under pressure from some of its member states to alter its 'one size fits all' strategy, the Economics Department, whose version of the discourse initially dominated, was also challenged from within by the Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs (DELSA), which developed its own alternative discourse.