Author(s):
Santos, João Rocha; ESGHT/Universidade do Algarve 
; Anunciação, Pedro Fernandes ; Jesus, Mário Marmelo
Date: 2013
Origin: Tourism & Management Studies
Subject(s): ; Social Responsibility, Economy, Austerity, Recession, Businesses.
Description
In 2010, Roubini and Mihm claimed:“The recent crisis highlighted the ‘too big to fail’ problem. The collapse of Lehman Brothers and the resulting cardiac arrest of the global financial system revealed that many institutions had become so large, leveraged and interconnected that their collapse could have systemic and catastrophic effects.”This global financial problem created a large impact in several economies, especially in European countries with a large external debt, unbalanced economies and a huge dependence from foreign funds. Two years after and regarding economic and financial pressures applied to countries such as Portugal, Ireland, Spain and Greece by European and other international financial authorities, we are living in a social environment generally held by the fear from future perspectives and a growing instability do to the huge reduction of the economies, employment and social benefits. The application of strict governmental austerity measures aiming to reestablish the national accounts, the reduction of public debts and the recovery of the financial system and banks has been consummated in a generalized increase of direct and indirect taxes, a gradual reduction of salaries and social benefits due to labor and a major restraint to social conditions of public assistance in areas such as education, health and unemployment.. We are witnessing a drastic reduction in consumption of companies and individuals, incapacity of financing businesses and firms, an increasing vanish of business agents and a dramatic rise of unemployment throughout Europe, especially in the Iberian Peninsula. All these facts lead the authors to set, in a reflective perspective, some questions about the rationality and utility of the measures taken by some politicians, public rulers and business managers and the real impact they have on social and business environments and in populations, at present time and in the near future.
