Introduction: Great transformations; Part I: Conceptual and methodological framework: 1 Unemployment, the labour market and the state; 2 Active Labour Market Policy: bridging the economic and social objectives; Part II: Transformation unemployment in East Germany and the tradition of ALMP: 3 Transformation unemployment in the eastern Bundeslander; 4 Institutional architecture of ALMP in the FRG; Part III: ALMP in the new Bundeslander 5 From 'Policy of the first hour' to the 'Second labour market'; 6 ALMP in a regional context; Part IV: ALMP in perspective: 7 Constraints and challenges facing the new German economy; 8 Employment and welfare restructuring; Conclusions; Bibliography; Index