"…this is a concise but thought-provoking and timely work. The author's alternative thinking provides a frame of reference to challenge dominant thinking in terms of economy and development. Readers who are interested in industrial relations or social security reform or who are practitioners in labour movements or trade unions will find this book intriguing and invaluable."
Work, Employment & Society, Vol. 13, December 1999

This book analyses the social impact of the Asian financial crisis and its policy implications. It documents the severe rise in unemployment and its repercussions in the worst-affected countries (the Republic of Korea, Thailand and Indonesia) and how this has, to a varying extent, overwhelmed the underdeveloped systems of social protection. It argues that, in the light of this experience, urgent action is required both to relieve current social distress and to strengthen systems of social protection.