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Brexit: EU social policy and the UK employment model

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  • Paul Teague
  • Jimmy Donaghey

Abstract

Big claims that are often unsubstantiated are made about the likely impact of Brexit on the UK labour market. This article seeks to go beyond the rhetoric and present a careful assessment of the employment relations consequences of Brexit for the UK. It addresses four key questions in particular: will Brexit end UK engagement in the EU's free movement of labour regime and if so, what will be the labour market consequences for the UK?; to what extent will Brexit weaken employment rights in the UK?; what impact will Brexit have on the behaviour of trade unions and on the functioning of collective bargaining in the UK?; and finally, what will be the effect of Brexit on the interactions between London and Brussels on wider employment policy questions. The article argues that Brexit poses acute policy dilemmas for the UK Government that are likely to generate considerable political and economic uncertainty. The fallout from this uncertainty is hard to predict in advance. It could either open the door to a Corbyn‐led Labour Government or alternatively to an even more thorough‐going deregulation of the UK labour market.

Suggested Citation

  • Paul Teague & Jimmy Donaghey, 2018. "Brexit: EU social policy and the UK employment model," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(5-6), pages 512-533, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:indrel:v:49:y:2018:i:5-6:p:512-533
    DOI: 10.1111/irj.12235
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. John Grahl & Paul Teague, 2013. "Reconstructing the eurozone: the role of EU social policy," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 37(3), pages 677-692.
    2. Christian Dustmann & Tommaso Frattini, 2014. "The Fiscal Effects of Immigration to the UK," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 124(580), pages 593-643, November.
    3. Gerard Strange, 2002. "British Trade Unions and European Union Integration in the 1990s: Politics versus Political Economy," Political Studies, Political Studies Association, vol. 50(2), pages 332-353, June.
    4. Jonathan Wadsworth, 2017. "Immigration and the UK Economy," CEP Election Analysis Papers 039, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    5. Jonathan Portes, 2016. "Immigration, Free Movement and the EU Referendum," National Institute Economic Review, National Institute of Economic and Social Research, vol. 236(1), pages 14-22, May.
    6. Denise Currie & Paul Teague, 2016. "Economic Citizenship and Workplace Conflict in Anglo-American Industrial Relations Systems," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 54(2), pages 358-384, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Stephen Drinkwater, 2021. "Brexit and the ‘left behind’: Job polarization and the rise in support for leaving the European Union," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(6), pages 569-588, November.
    2. Gabriella Alberti & Jo Cutter, 2022. "Labour migration policy post‐Brexit: The contested meaning of regulation by old and new actors," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(5), pages 430-445, September.
    3. Brewster, Chris & Fontinha, Rita & Haak-Saheem, Washika & Lamperti, Fabio & Walker, James, 2023. "Linking embeddedness to physical career mobility: How Brexit affected the preference of business, economics and management academics for leaving the UK," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(9).

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