What does EU law truly mean for the member states? Do they abide or don't they, and why? This book presents the first encompassing and in-depth empirical study of the effects of 'voluntaristic' and (partly) 'soft' EU policies in all 15 member states. - Съдържа: Cover; Half-title; Series-title; Title; Copyright; Contents; Figures; Tables; Preface; 1 Introduction: flexible EU governance in domestic practice; 2 Theorising the domestic impact of EU law: the state of the art and beyond; 3 EUsocial policy over time: the role of Directives; 4 The Employment Contract Information Directive: a small but useful social complement to the internal market 1; 5 The Pregnant Workers Directive: European social policy between protection and employability; 6 The Working Time Directive: European standards taken hostage by domestic politics.*