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Employment status

Employment status refers to the contractual aspect of employment in terms of duration and number of working hours, incorporating economic risk, the autonomy and the authority which workers have in their jobs. The main categories are employee and self-employed. Employees are defined as someone who gets a salary from an employer or a temporary employment agency, with a distinction between employees with an unlimited or fixed-term contract. Self-employed persons can have employees. Across all workers a distinction can be made between those who work full-time and those who work part-time, either voluntarily or involuntarily.

Topic

Recent updates

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Social protection and SURE

Presentation made at the 'Informal meeting of Employment and Social Affairs Ministers (EPSCO)' by Ivailo Kalfin, Executive Director, Eurofound and Prof. dr. Paul Schoukens, Full Professor, KU Leuven. Belgian Presidency...

Presentation
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Job insecurity undermines democracy

Workers on non-permanent contracts and workers with no formal contract are less satisfied with the functioning of democracy in their country, as are workers experiencing job insecurity. They are less...

1 Září 2023
Corporate news

Eurofound expert(s)

John Hurley

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
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Carlos Vacas‑Soriano

Carlos Vacas Soriano is a research manager in the Employment unit at Eurofound. He works on topics related to wage and income inequalities, minimum wages, low pay, job quality...

Research manager,
Employment research unit
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Martina Bisello

​Martina Bisello is a research manager in the Employment unit at Eurofound. Her research interests include gender gaps in the labour market, occupational change and the impact of...

Research manager,
Employment research unit
Publications results (26)

Samostatná výdělečná činnost v EU: kvalita pracovních míst a vývoj v oblasti sociální ochrany

Ensuring greater social protection for self-employed people has been the subject of much policy debate in recent years. In 2019, the Council of the European Union adopted a recommendation on access to social protection for workers and the self-employed. Sudden reductions in income during the COVID-1

30 January 2024
Publication
Research report
Non-standard employment
Pracovní podmínky a udržitelná práce
Employment status
Kvalita pracovních míst
Social protection
Working conditions
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Společenské důsledky nestability trhu práce

This report investigates the social groups whose attachment to the labour market may be unstable and who are most likely to have non-standard working arrangements, and the implications of such arrangements, and job insecurity, for workers’ well-being, social exclusion, trust, perception of fairness

29 August 2023
Publication
Research report
Social policies
Social inclusion
Non-standard employment
Podpora sociální soudržnosti a konvergence
Subjective well-being
Trust
Employment status
Dobře fungující a inkluzivní trhy práce
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COVID-19: dopady na zaměstnanost a pracovní život

Disclaimer: Please note that this report was updated with revised data (specifically for Bulgaria) on 23 March 2021.Tato zpráva si klade za cíl posoudit počáteční dopad krize COVID-19 na zaměstnanost v Evropě (do 2. čtvrtletí roku 2020), včetně jejích dopadů v jednotlivých odvětvích a na různé

11 March 2021
Publication
Research report
Sociální dialog
Social policies
Social partners
Non-standard employment
Mzdy a příjmy
Social protection
Pracovní doba
Unemployment
Employment status
Změny na trhu práce
COVID-19
Labour market policies
Living conditions
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Labour market change: Trends and policy approaches towards flexibilisation

What have been the major trends and policy developments regarding the flexibilisation of employment in recent years? Eurofound’s work programme for 2017–2020 set out to document and capture these changes in the world of work. This flagship publication provides an overview of developments in Europe

16 April 2020
Publication
Flagship report
Platform work
Non-standard employment
Working time
Structural change
New forms of employment
Employment structure
Inclusive labour markets
Employment status
Employment relationship
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
Labour market policies
Employment and labour markets

Platform work: Maximising the potential while safeguarding standards?

Platform work emerged onto European labour markets about a decade ago. While still small in scale, it is growing and evolving into a variety of forms. Different types of platform work have significantly different effects on the employment and working conditions of the affiliated workers.

23 September 2019
Publication
Policy brief
Platform work
Working conditions
New forms of employment
Employment status
Employment relationship
Digitalisation
Job quality
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
Working conditions and sustainable work
Image of a group of business people going to work for Eurofound's report 'Does employment status matter for job quality?'

Does employment status matter for job quality?

Two-thirds of the EU labour force are in permanent, full-time employment; the remaining one-third has a non-standard employment status, meaning temporary or part-time employment or self-employment. Given the variety of employment statuses, it is worth asking whether working conditions differ across

22 November 2018
Publication
Policy brief
Working conditions and sustainable work
Employment status
Health and well-being at work
Job quality

Annual review of working life 2017

Annual review of working life 2017 is part of a series of annual reviews published by Eurofound and provides an overview of the latest developments in industrial relations and working conditions across the EU and Norway. The annual review collates information based on reports from Eurofound’s

22 October 2018
Publication
Research report
Social dialogue
Social partners
Non-standard employment
Working time
Working conditions and sustainable work
Working conditions
Employment status
Employment relationship
Health and well-being at work
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Industrial action
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations
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Social insecurities and resilience

Feelings of insecurity in several dimensions of life are widespread in the EU population, even among those who are materially well-off. Policymakers need to take these insecurities into account to better understand the concerns and dissatisfactions of citizens.

09 October 2018
Publication
Policy brief
Retirement
Quality of society
Social protection
Subjective well-being
Trust
Unemployment
Employment status
Care
Living conditions
Living conditions and quality of life

Women in management: Underrepresented and overstretched?

Despite years of gender equality legislation, men outnumber women in management positions by two to one. While structural barriers continue to impede women’s career advancement, women themselves may be deterred from becoming managers if they perceive that it would have a negative impact on their

02 October 2018
Publication
Policy brief
Employment status
Gender equality
Job quality
Work organisation
Work-life balance
Working conditions
Working conditions and sustainable work

Fraudulent contracting of work: Abusing fixed-term contracts (Belgium, Estonia and Spain)

Employment relations remain defined vis-à-vis the standard employment relationship (permanent, full-time, direct). Fixed-term contracts are therefore understood as non-standard employment contracts by which an employer hires an employee for a fixed duration. The main difference between permanent and

27 July 2017
Publication
Information sheet
Employment relationship
Employment status
Fraudulent work
Non-standard employment
Working conditions and sustainable work
Online resources results (152)

Health and safety of workers on fixed-term and temporary contracts

On 22 July 2011, the European Commission issued a staff working paper (235Kb PDF) [1] examining the implementation of Council Directive 91/383/EEC [2] of 25 June 1991 on measures to encourage improvements in the safety and health at work of workers with fixed term or temporary contracts. The working

4 Prosinec 2011
Article
Employment status
Health and well-being at work
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Working conditions and sustainable work

Sharp increase in flexible forms of labour

The Labour Inspectorate (SEPE) is the main investigative branch of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (YPAKP [1]) and is charged with controlling the implementation of labour legislation in Greece. Its primary objective is to safeguard labour rights and the health and safety [2] of workers

29 Září 2011
Article
Employment status
Employment and labour markets

Poor rewards for self-employed knowledge professionals

In April 2011, the trade-union related Institute for Economic and Social Research (IRES [1]), published a report on the quality of work of workers in knowledge professions (in Italian, 1.66Mb PDF) [2]. The report presents the findings of a survey of knowledge professionals carried out on behalf of

23 Srpen 2011
Article
Skills and training
Employment status
Pay and income
Employment and labour markets
Social protection

Survey reveals increased precariousness of female employment

In April 2011 the Agency for Social Surveys and Analyses (ASSA-M [1]) presented the results of a survey, Women working in precarious working conditions (in Bulgarian) [2], which was carried out in October 2010. The survey, which was representative of the population of Bulgaria aged 18–60 years

17 Srpen 2011
Article
Employment status
Gender equality
Employment and labour markets

Impact of subcontracting on working conditions

The study (in French, 164Kb PDF) [1] published by the French agency for Studies, Research and Statistics (DARES [2], part of the Ministry of Work, Employment and Health [3]) assesses the impact of subcontracting on working conditions. Drawing on data from the 2006–2007 Organisational Change and

4 Srpen 2011
Article
Employment status
Employment and labour markets
Job quality
Work organisation
Working conditions
Working conditions and sustainable work

No improvement in stress rate of self-employed

The Flemish workability monitor was instigated by the Social and Economic Council of Flanders (SERV [1]) in 2003, in order to follow up the policy agreements made in the Vilvoorde Pact (in Dutch, 1.13Mb PDF) [2] on improving quality of work. The Innovation & Work Foundation at SERV was commissioned

27 Červenec 2011
Article
Employment status
Employment and labour markets

Ethnic minorities’ jobs hardest hit by crisis

In February and September 2010 the sociological team of the Sofia-based Open Society Institute (OSI [1]) and experts from the World Bank [2] carried out a Bulgaria Crisis Monitoring Survey to study the economic situation of Bulgarian households in times of crisis. The results (in Bulgarian) [3] have

10 Červenec 2011
Article
Employment status
Gender equality
Employment and labour markets
Discrimination at work

Sick immigrant workers more likely to go to work

The Institute for Work, Environment and Health (ISTAS [1]), an independent body founded by Trade Union Confederation of Workers’ Commissions (CCOO [2]), has recently published a report (215Kb PDF) [3] on sickness presenteeism among immigrant workers. The term ‘presenteeism’ is understood as ‘going

10 Červenec 2011
Article
Health and well-being at work
Employment status
Employment and labour markets
Social protection
Working conditions
Working conditions and sustainable work

Employment conditions of homeworkers

A survey carried out in Bulgaria between 1 January and 30 April 2010 aimed to map the employment conditions of homeworkers and to present a more complete and comprehensive view of the homeworking [1] sector, which includes more than 500,000 people. [1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories

19 Duben 2011
Article
Employment status
Gender equality
Employment and labour markets
Working poor

Survey reveals employees’ apathy to their rights at work

The results of the fourth annual population survey (in Latvian, 1.4Mb MS PowerPoint) [1] carried out by the Free Trade Union Confederation of Latvia (LBAS [2]) on issues relating to working conditions [3] was published in March 2010. The survey is one of the measures of the European Social Fund [4]

17 Duben 2011
Article
Employment status
Employment and labour markets
Health and well-being at work
Blogs results (3)
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Charting a positive path for platform workers

While 2020 may come to be seen as the year platform work gathered pace and started to go mainstream – thanks in large part to COVID-19 containment measures sparking an increase in food and grocery delivery – 2021 could be the year that regulation of platform work is set in motion. The well-known

24 Únor 2021
Irene Mandl
Blog
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
Digitalisation
Employment status
New forms of employment
Platform work
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All aboard: Hauling undeclared workers onto the pandemic rescue boats

A debate has started in Italy about the support that the state should provide to undeclared workers operating in the informal economy during the COVID-19 crisis. Nunzia Catalfo, Italy’s Minister of Labour in April stated that ‘undeclared work should not exist’ but went on to acknowledge ‘it is a

11 Květen 2020
Isabella Biletta
Blog
Social protection
Undeclared work
Employment status
COVID-19
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Economic downturns expose the vulnerability of a growing number of precarious workers

Up to the start of 2020, recent EU economic and labour market trends were often discussed in terms of the periods before and after the Great Recession. It now appears likely that, in the short- to medium-term, the repercussions of that economic crisis will be dwarfed by the unfolding impact of the

21 Duben 2020
Tina Weber
Blog
COVID-19
Non-standard employment
Employment status
Labour and social regulation
Employment and labour markets

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