A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

The curious compatibility of consensus, corporatism, and neoliberalism: The Finnish business community and the retasking of a corporatist welfare state




AuthorsWuokko Maiju

PublisherTaylor & Francis

Publication year2021

JournalBusiness History

Volume63

Issue4

First page 668

Last page685

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1080/00076791.2019.1598379

Web address https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00076791.2019.1598379


Abstract

This article addresses the apparent paradox of simultaneous neoliberal
change and welfare-statist, corporatist continuity by presenting an
empirical case study of the advent of neoliberal ideas in Finland in the
1970s and 1980s. The article focuses on the attempts of a free-market
think tank, EVA, and the employers’ association, STK, to advance
policies such as economic deregulation, international competitiveness,
welfare retrenchment, and active social and labour market policies
through the neoliberal retasking of the corporatist Finnish welfare
state. EVA and the STK utilised seemingly non-neoliberal means, that is
an economic policy consensus and tripartite corporatist arrangements,
and reformulated their content to better correspond with business
interests. Instead of demolition, the outcome has been the redefinition
and incremental transformation of the state from a provider of welfare
to a promoter of competitiveness, productivity, and employment.


Downloadable publication

This is an electronic reprint of the original article.
This reprint may differ from the original in pagination and typographic detail. Please cite the original version.





Last updated on 2024-26-11 at 22:34