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Job creation

Job creation refers to the process of providing new jobs, especially for people who were previously unemployed or inactive. Job creation is a key priority for EU social and employment policy. 

Topic

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Since 2002, the European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) has been monitoring the employment impact of large-scale restructuring events in Europe and covers the 27 EU Member States plus Norway.

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Eurofound research

Research carries out research on employment and changing labour markets, restructuring and job creation in the EU Member States. The investigation of factors supporting or inhibiting job creation also requires access to company-level information. Eurofound has conducted four editions of its European Company Survey (ECS) since 2003, providing comparative evidence on company practices and their link to innovation and job creation.

Jobs monitor

Eurofound’s European Jobs Monitor (EJM) looks in detail at recent shifts in employment at Member State and aggregate EU levels, covering cases of job creation and job loss by occupation and sector.

 

Restructuring monitor

The European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) has recently explored the case of SMEs, meaning companies with fewer than 250 employees, as a source of job creation. It found that SMEs are likely to have contributed to improved employment levels and increasingly gain attention as a source of job creation in Europe. However, due to the large scale of the SME population, there is considerable heterogeneity among them, and not all are equally dynamic job creators.

Born globals

‘Born global’ enterprises – young companies with an international mindset – are also dynamic in job creation, despite their low share among enterprises. Eurofound research has looked at the potential of job creation in these new international businesses. It characterises born globals and outline their main strengths and weaknesses, as well as economic and labour market potential. 

Sector focus

A study on the creation of more and better jobs in home-care services highlights the persistent labour shortages in the health and social care sector. It analyses initiatives that were successful in either creating more jobs in the sector, or improving the quality of its jobs, with the dual aim of attracting new recruits and retaining existing staff.

As part of a pilot project on the future of manufacturing in Europe from 2015 to 2018, Eurofound gathered information on the reshoring of manufacturing and other value-chain activities to the EU and the resulting job gains.

Key outputs

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Reshoring – namely the relocation of value chain activities back to the home country or its nearby region – has attracted an increasing interest both among scholars and policymakers. The...

1 April 2019
Publication
Research report
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As Europe’s population ages, the number of adults needing long-term care is increasing. There are, however, persistent labour shortages in the health and social care sector; well-qualified staff are particularly...

10 September 2013
Publication
Research report

EU context

The European Commission’s Investment Plan for Europe adopted in November 2014 focuses on creating jobs and boosting growth by making smarter use of financial resources, removing obstacles to investment and providing visibility and technical assistance to investment projects. Building on this, the InvestEU Programme 2021–2027 will further boost investment, innovation and job creation by making EU funding simpler to access and more effective. 

Research shows that the strongest recent structural employment growth was recorded in the health and care sectors and in information and communication technologies. Both sectors have strong potential for continued job creation, along with green jobs, as highlighted in the Commission’s 2012 ‘Employment package’. 

The Commission has recognised the contribution of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to economic development and labour markets in the EU, and it supports SMEs through a variety of policies and instruments. In 2016, the European Parliament issued a resolution on how best to support the job creation potential of SMEs.

Eurofound’s work on job creation links in with the Commission’s 2019–2024 priority on an economy that works for people. 

 

European Industrial Relations Dictionary 

Eurofound expert(s)

John Hurley

John Hurley is a senior research manager in the Employment unit at Eurofound. He took up the role of research manager in February 2012. He is responsible for the European...

Senior research manager,
Employment research unit
Publications results (108)

The European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) annual report for 2015 explores the issue of job creation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). SMEs are increasingly recognised as a job engine for Europe. However, given the heterogeneity of the vast SME population, not all contribute equally to

27 January 2016

In the last quarter of 2015, better economic data in the EU was overshadowed by increasing anxiety about the potential impact of declining growth and rising instability in developing economies. Aggregate unemployment rates in the Union are in their first sustained downward path since the global

20 January 2016

In light of the recent economic and financial crisis and its detrimental effects on EU labour markets, both academics and policymakers are paying increasing attention to the role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in job creation.

18 November 2015

Economic anxiety has resurfaced during the summer months and threatens to undermine the emergent European recovery. All of the things that should be helping to boost growth – ECB quantitative easing, the weak euro, low interest rates, cheap oil – appear to be having limited effect in the face of a

21 October 2015

In a context of globally slow growth since the financial crisis, the EU and in particular the euro zone economies have underperformed relative to other major developed-world economies. Output in the euro zone remained lower in the first quarter of 2015 than seven years earlier, and three million

29 July 2015

This report describes the findings of a study of change in job tenure between 2002 and 2012 in the EU. The study examined change in mean tenure as well as the distribution of short and long tenure in the EU and in individual Member States. It also looked at differences in tenure according to

15 July 2015

Europe has begun to emerge from the prolonged slump caused by the global financial crisis in 2008 and exacerbated by the euro zone single-currency crisis in 2010–2011. In the last year, aggregate employment levels have risen faster than at any time since 2008. This, the fourth annual European Jobs

09 July 2015

Economic recovery in the EU has some positive tailwinds at last. These come in three forms; reduced oil prices are a significant boon to the EU as it is a major net importer; the ECB’s decision to adopt unconventional monetary policy options previously implemented in other developed economies

28 April 2015

Dramatic recent oil price declines have seen deflation take hold in the EU. General price levels in December 2014 were 0.2% lower than a year earlier. This is further evidence of a tentative European economic recovery that appears to be running out of steam. Growth forecasts for the EU have been

02 February 2015

Recent data has cast doubt on the strength of the recovery. In its October 2014 World Economic Outlook, the IMF predicts a euro zone growth rate of 0.8% in 2014 (down from a forecast growth rate of 1.1% in April 2014). Factors contributing to the poorer outlook are slowdowns in the US, Japan and in

28 October 2014

Online resources results (44)
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First impacts of the Ukrainian crisis on employment in the EU

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has shocked the world and the international community. Cities being destroyed, civilians wounded, innocent lives lost, refugees fleeing to other countries, and economic sanctions have become everyday news as this unprovoked and unlawful war unfolds.

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Bank restructuring: disruptors versus incumbents

While high-street banks reacted to the COVID-19 pandemic by accelerating the push to digitalisation and cutting jobs, some digital-only banks are recruiting new staff to meet growing demand. An example is the ‘disruptor’ bank Revolut which has recently announced the creation of 1,000 jobs worldwide

Slovakia: latest working life developments Q2 2018

An increase in wage supplements, easier access for people from countries outside the EU to join the Slovak labour market and new legislation for social enterprises are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Slovakia in

Austria: Latest working life developments – Q1 2017

New legislation regarding social and wage dumping, qualification and childcare benefits, the federal government’s work programme and an increase in members for the Austrian Trade Union Federation are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments

Portugal: Latest working life developments – Q3 2016

Good news on unemployment, criticism by social partners of sanctions on Portugal for breaking EU rules on the public deficit, and talks on increasing the minimum wage are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Portugal

Cyprus: Latest working life developments – Q3 2016

A strike by primary school teachers and the resumption of public service recruitment are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Cyprus in the third quarter of 2016.

Spain: Latest working life developments – Q3 2016

A slight fall in unemployment and trade union concerns over labour precariousness, and the need for social partners to reach agreement on a new salary pact are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Spain in the third

Sweden: Debate on 'simple jobs' and lower entry-level wages

During the last quarter of 2015, and in preparation for the 2016 wage bargaining rounds, there was an intensive debate in Sweden on how best to reduce unemployment. One of the proposals put forward was to lower entry-level wages, thereby encouraging employers to hire additional staff.

Bulgaria: Proposed electricity price rise sparks protest from both sides of industry

Planned rises in electricity prices have drawn heated objections from employer organisations and trade unions and have led to large demonstrations.

Denmark: New reform targets unemployment

On 16 June 2014, employment reform to promote flexibility and encourage a high employment rate was agreed by the Danish parliament. The aim is to ensure that businesses get the workers they need, and the unemployed can improve their skills and qualifications. The reform will come into force fully by


Blogs results (6)
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At the very outset of its mandate, the new European Commission presented the European Green Deal, establishing the objective of becoming the first climate-neutral bloc in the world by 2050. The initiative emphasises the seriousness which the European Commission places on the climate and biodiversity

21 February 2020
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Economic disparities have been decreasing between EU member states over the past decade, but at the same time inequality has been growing within member states. Despite national level convergence, the gap in wealth and income between the rich and the poor is growing in most of Europe. Some of this

29 October 2019
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Over the past four years a special project delegated to Eurofound has looked in detail at ongoing changes in manufacturing on a global scale, analysed how the industry will change further in the future, and assessed what the impacts will be for Europe. Looking at everything from changes in tasks for

9 April 2019
The many faces of self-employment In Europe

While the Europe 2020 strategy actively promotes entrepreneurial self-employment as a means to create good jobs, policy makers at national and EU level are actively looking at better social protection for self-employed workers. Understanding this paradox requires looking beyond the ‘self-employed’

26 October 2017
New-generation cars boost manufacturing employment

Rising levels of employment in manufacturing in the EU since 2013 have seen the part reversal of a long-term decline in employment in this sector. Data from the European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) database to early September 2017 show that, for the first time since 2005, the number of new

25 October 2017
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The EU has finally recovered all the net employment losses sustained since the global financial crisis. It has been a long and painful process. But there is at last growing evidence of positive momentum in EU labour markets, if not quite ‘animal spirits’. Many of those member states most affected by

26 July 2017
Upcoming publications results (1)

This report provides updated data on the scale of labour shortages and labour market slack in the EU and at Member State level and focusses on organisational policies aimed at attracting workers in shortage occupations. It provides lessons on steps employers can take to fill vacancies, whether actin

September 2024
Forthcoming
Publication
Research report
Data results (2)
24 October 2023
Reference period:
20 September 2023

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