'Considering its theoretical contributions, it is not an exaggeration to say that this book may … be an incentive for further studies … it is an essential book for both social scientists and policy makers who are interested in the future of the welfare state.' Tuçba Yumakli, Acta Oeconomica

This book challenges existing theories of welfare state change by analyzing pension reforms in France, Germany, and Switzerland between 1970 and 2004. It explains why all three countries were able to adopt far-reaching reforms, adapting their pension regimes to both financial austerity and new social risks. In a radical departure from the neo-institutionalist emphasis on policy stability, the book argues that socio-structural change has led to a multidimensional pension reform agenda. A variety of cross-cutting lines of political conflict, emerging from the transition to a post-industrial economy, allowed governments to engage in strategies of political exchange and coalition-building, fostering broad cross-class coalitions in support of major reform packages. Methodologically, the book proposes a novel strategy to analyze lines of conflict, configurations of political actors, and coalitional dynamics over time. This strategy combines quantitative analyses of actor configurations based on coded policy positions with in-depth case studies.

1. Introduction: 'eppur si muove' - welfare state change despite institutional inertia
2. Modernization in hard times: the post-industrial politics of continental welfare state reform
Part I. Pension Reform in Continental Europe: A Framework of Analysis: 3. A new reform agenda: old age security in the post-industrial era
4. Changing alliances: conflict lines and actor configurations
5. Reform outputs: strategies of coalitional engineering
Part II. Determinants of Successful Pension Reform in Continental Europe: 6. France - trade union fragmentation as reform opportunity
7. Germany - institutional obstacles to multidimensional reform politics
8. Switzerland - recalibration as an enabling mechanism of pension compromises
9. Conclusion: reform outputs and political implications.

Subject Areas: Political economy [KCP], Comparative politics [JPB]