Globalization, Flexicurity and Adult Vocational Training in Denmark

For more than 20 years, the performance of the Danish labour market has attracted attention, with its relatively low unemployment rates and high but rather compressed wages. While Denmark was hit hard by the global financial crisis a decade ago, the unemployment rate did not exceed 8 per cent and it remained below the OECD average. Denmark is a small, open economy, and the Danish labour market has been exposed to globalization shocks and technological change over the same period of time. Offshoring, rising Chinese import competition, automation and immigration have forced many Danish firms and workers to adjust, but the labour market appears to have coped well with the adjustment process. This chapter discusses whether Danish labour market policies have been particularly effective in times of structural change.