European labour markets, companies, social partners, face significant changes that appear to require innovation and ambitious answers, experimentation and courage. In the context of crisis the quality of work is not the first place on the European agenda. However, the question of creating new and better jobs remains a priority of the European Employment Strategy. But are new jobs better jobs? Achieving the “Europe 2020” strategy objectives related to employment and better jobs, means commitment and participation of all stakeholders. But how? What could be done by whom? Are there practices that could inspire across boundaries, regions, sectors, companies? These are questions whose answers seek the European comparative project WAQLING (http://www.walqing.eu).

The main aim of WALQING is to increase researchers’, stakeholders’, managers’ and policymakers’ knowledge of the quality of work and life in new and growing jobs. It helps to build actors’ capacity to identify both problematic and good practices of market developments, policies and company strategies in Europe. In order to address quality of work in the context of the European experiences, the Bulgarian team of WALQING will host an international conference on stakeholders’ strategies and institutional policies in improving quality of work.

As organisers we look forward to interesting and rich debates. We hope that this conference will bring together academics and practitioners from all perspectives, from Bulgaria and different European countries, in order to better understand the scope of actions and successful exchange of approaches at the level of organisation and at the level of sectors. The conference will take place on the 18th and 19th of October 2012 in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Institute for the Study of Societies and Knowledge, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

This Call for papers invites original academic and actor contributions on one or more of the following five core themes:
 Legal law changes and impacts, policy implications and open discussions.
 What do employers do? Employers’ initiatives at company or sectoral level.
 What do trade unions do? Addressing quality of work? Measuring quality of work and benchmarking in Europe.
 Company level best practices and transfers conditions?
 Employees and quality of work. Challenges, losses and gains.

The working languages of the conference are English and Bulgarian. Simultaneous translation is provided.
The deadline for submission of abstracts in English (up to 500 words) is June 15th, 2012. They must be sent to Darina Peycheva, at dpeicheva@gmail.com
Authors of selected abstracts will be informed by the 10th of July 2012. Full papers in English or in Bulgarian are expected by 15th of September 2012.
Scientific Committee: Vassil Kirov (ISSK, BAS, Bulgaria), Rumiana Stoilova (ISSK, BAS, Bulgaria), Ursula Holtgrewe (Forba, Austria), Stephen Bouquin (University of Evry, France), Monique Ramioul (HIVA-KU Leuven, Belgium), Tania Chavdarova (Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”, Bulgaria), Georgia Petraki (Panteon University, Greece)
Organisation Committee: Vassil Kirov (ISSK, BAS, Bulgaria), Ekaterina Markova (ISSK, BAS, Bulgaria), Darina Peycheva (ISSK, BAS, Bulgaria), Diana Nenkova (ISSK, BAS, Bulgaria)