Labour Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Labour Law - Essay Example This paves the way against further abuse by employers who wish to minimize the number of employees employed by demanding rendition of work beyond what a human being may ordinarily give. Three, it also provides no less than twenty-eight (28) paid holidays which gives an opportunity to implement work-life balance. The latter is the strategy recently being propagated in the international community that allows every employee or worker to perform his responsibilities as a family man and as a social person without sacrificing his work. Since work-life balance theory was only introduced and implemented lately, it can be considered that British Labour Law appropriately and timely provided for this right or opportunity to all workers under its jurisdiction. Four, the right to flexible working patterns provided under the Employment Rights Act of 1996, the Maternity and Parental Leave Regulations of 1999, and the Additional Paternity Leave Regulations of 2010 provide for more broader opportunit ies for both men and women to perform their tasks as parents. The laws also recognize the need of the parents to take leaves from work in order to care for their children without fear of affecting their career advancement. These laws, obviously give equal rights for both mothers and fathers, unlike in other countries and/or in previous laws wherein only the rights of the mother is recognized due to physical giving of birth. Now, British Labour Laws recognize the fact that even the father of a child needs to be with his child, and has the obligation or responsibility to care for the child in lieu of or together with the mother. The Pensions Act of 2008 which requires the employers to automatically enroll every jobholder or worker in an occupational pension scheme, unless the latter refuse later on, is also commendable, considering that with the recent trend amongst young professionals, the biggest tendency is for them to spend their hard-earned monies to travels and buying unnecessar y gadgets, leaving nothing for the future. This law adequately addresses the long-term problem that might be encountered by the workers by mandating the periodic contribution to a pension plan that will ultimately benefit the workers themselves. Also, the Equality Act of 2010 which provides for a detailed process of investigation of discrimination and/or harassment cases, is considered adequate to address contemporary manner of abuses in the workplace. Unlike before wherein the prosecution and investigation of abuses are left with the individual concerned, now, the employer has the obligation to undertake its own investigation of any possible act of discrimination or harassment. Thus, the employers are now more involved in the protection of its employees against abuses, not only against the employers themselves but also against fellow employees. On the other hand, while the Employment Rights Act of 1996 provides for a consolidated set of rights for working persons, still, British La bour Laws fail to give an exact or concrete definition of an employee for purposes of determining who are the real beneficiaries of these rights. Some parts of the law mention of worker, other parts mention of employee, while others refer to job contractor, and others. It would have been better if this can be addressed to as soon as possible so that the persons to whom these

The influence of ideology on the formation of Soviet foreign policy Essay

The influence of ideology on the formation of Soviet foreign policy - Essay Example The notion of a political system led in its international behaviour by a particular set of operational and ideological rules rather than temporary concepts of state ‘concerns’ is usually hard for Westerners to comprehend. Many scholars would agree that the complicated procedures, strategies, and goals making up the official Marxism-Leninism principle have had some influence on the formation of Soviet foreign policy, even though there are critical debates over the extent of the relevance of ideological influence. For instance, the policy aim underlying George F. Kennan’s well-known article in 1947 defining the justification for what developed into the ‘containment policy’ (Evans 1993, 44) was clearly to force the Soviet Union to discard ideological frame of thinking and to develop into a more cooperative and pragmatic one. Kennan tried to accomplish this by challenging Soviet rulers with geostrategic facts which rendered the policies and analysis origi nated from the ideology appears inexpedient and bleak (Quimet 2003, 81). A main idea underlying the containment strategy was that a ‘non-ideological’, specifically ‘normal’, Soviet Union would be much more unproblematic to contend with in the post-war period, when continuous cooperation between East and West would make the conditions of international security and reconstruction that much simpler to accomplish (Yanowitch 1991, 65). Kennan in the end came to challenge the relevance of the ideological influence (ibid, p. 65)... ev regime, Hugh Seton-Watson, satisfactorily described the continuous Western discussions of the influences of Soviet foreign policy as an outcome of what he refers to as ‘either-or fallacies’ (Miller 1991, 2): The most widespread is the controversy between those who see ‘ideology’ as the main force behind Soviet policy, and those who give this place to ‘security’. It is our case that the two are inseparable, and there is no need to repeat the argument. Arising from this misleading ‘either-or-ism’ is the dispute, perhaps even more widespread, as to whether Soviet policy is ‘expansionist’ or ‘defensive’. It is both. Obsession with protection of frontiers and of strategic position leads to expansion, and each successful expansion creates new positions to defend (ibid, p. 2). The argument of this essay resembles Seton-Watson’s assumption. Ideology has consistently been a major influence in the formation of Soviet foreign policy, but definitely not the only one. Also, its influence has usually been indirect rather than direct. Specifically, rather directly imposing policies, it has functioned to form the goals and context of Soviet policymakers, as well as their views of such seemingly ‘normal’ priorities as ‘defence’, ‘security’ and the requirements for ‘peace’ (Miller 1991, 2); the influence of ideology being referred to, as in Seton-Watson’s statement cited above, represent quite evidently the ‘old political thinking’ (OLT) (ibid, p. 3) that is currently challenged by Gorbachev. The Ideological Influence The definition of ‘ideology’ is itself the centre of some disagreement, as well as the characteristic of its contribution in state decision-making. Ideology, as defined by one scholar, is a ‘preconceived set or