Abstract
What are the implications of the "social question" confronting the industrialized countries today? Of the changes affecting the world of work, which are those driven by the needs of production, and which are those dictated by the (im)balance of power between labour and capital? Is employment generally growing more precarious, or is the labour market becoming segmented? What social protection and regulations might be introduced to counter the new risks and uncertainties inherent in today's economic environment? This "Perspective" reports on the first in a series of symposiums organized by the ILO and France to seek answers to these questions.