유럽연합은 최근 여러 정책분야에 걸쳐서 개방형 조정방식(Open Method of Coordination; OMC)을 도입하고 있다. 특히 유럽연합은 1997년 유럽고용전략(European Employment Strategy)을 채택하였는데, 이는 OMC를 활용하여 개별 회원국의 고용정책을 유럽연합 차원에서 조정하고, 목표 설정과 평가를 통하여 모든 회원국들이 보다 나은 많은 일자리를 창출하고 고용을 증진하도록 정책을 수립하고 추진한다. 이는 기본적으로 국가간 조정이라는 성격을 지니지만, 정책과정에서 다양한 정부계층과 관련 부처, 사용자단체와 노동자단체, 전문가집단 등 여러 이해관계집단의 개방적인 참여와 논의가 보장되며, 정책학습을 위한 여러 수단을 활용하여 보다 적실성 있는 정책을 개발하는 메커니즘이다. 이러한 OMC의 특성은 한국적 상황에서도 상당한 의미를 지닌다고 볼 수 있다. 이 연구에서는 OMC가 실제 회원국 차원에서 제대로 작용되는지 여부를 평가하고자 하였다. 벨기에, 덴마크, 이탈리아, 몰타, 리투아니아, 슬로베니아 등 6개국을 대상으로 정책참여와 정책학습을 중심으로 유럽고용전략과 OMC가 회원국의 고용정책에 어떤 영향을 미치고 있는지를 실증적으로 평가하였다. 평가 결과, 전반적으로 OMC는 회원국의 정책수립과정에 긍정적인 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타나고 있으며, 공동목표 달성을 위한 능률적이고 효과적인 방법으로 인식되고 있다.

The European Union has applied the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) as a new mode of governance to a range of policy fields. The OMC can be defined as a form of transnational target-setting between national governments of the Member States of the European Union, with the ultimate aim of starting a learning process between national governments about how to respond with national policies to universal political and social challenges. The OMC was first applied in EU employment policy, as defined in the Amsterdam Treaty of 1997. Since its launch in 1997, the European Employment Strategy (EES) has been developed in order to encourage exchange of information and joint discussions by all Member States, thus trying to find solutions or best practices together which could help creating more and better jobs in every Member States. This study evaluates whether the OMC has been successfully implemented in the national policy making process in the Member States. With the responses from Belgium, Denmark, Italy, Malta, Lithuania, and Slovenia, it has empirically analyzed the effects of the OMC and the EES on the national employment policy, with focusing on policy participation and policy learning. The results show that the OMC has positively influenced on the national policy making process of the member states, and it is the efficient and effective method in achieving the common objectives in employment policy.

The European Union has applied the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) as a new mode of governance to a range of policy fields. The OMC can be defined as a form of transnational target-setting between national governments of the Member States of the European Union, with the ultimate aim of starting a learning process between national governments about how to respond with national policies to universal political and social challenges. The OMC was first applied in EU employment policy, as defined in the Amsterdam Treaty of 1997. Since its launch in 1997, the European Employment Strategy (EES) has been developed in order to encourage exchange of information and joint discussions by all Member States, thus trying to find solutions or best practices together which could help creating more and better jobs in every Member States. This study evaluates whether the OMC has been successfully implemented in the national policy making process in the Member States. With the responses from Belgium, Denmark, Italy, Malta, Lithuania, and Slovenia, it has empirically analyzed the effects of the OMC and the EES on the national employment policy, with focusing on policy participation and policy learning. The results show that the OMC has positively influenced on the national policy making process of the member states, and it is the efficient and effective method in achieving the common objectives in employment policy.

open method of coordination (OMC), European Union, European Employment Strategy, policy participation, policy learning