Jungblut, Jean-Marie

What have been the major developments in quality of life and public services in Europe in recent years, as captured by research into these areas in Eurofound’s work programme for 2017–2020? This flagship publication provides a synthesis...

Much policy is developed and operationalised through the prism of age, and addressing differences in the economic and social circumstances of different age groups is an ongoing concern of policymakers. This policy brief looks at inequalities in the quality of life of Europeans across six age groups.

How to combine work with life is a fundamental issue for many people, an issue that policymakers, social partners, businesses and individuals are seeking to resolve. Simultaneously, new challenges  and solutions are transforming the interface between work and life: an ageing population, technological change, higher employment rates and fewer weekly working hours.

In this article, Jean-Marie Jungblut looks at the health of careers in Europe. He argues that, since the average length of the most important job in a person’s life is over 20 years, time should be put aside in the middle of a career to check the fit between the worker and the job. Different scenarios can arise from such an exercise.

Nearly 37,000 people in 33 European countries (28 EU Member States and 5 candidate countries) were interviewed in the last quarter of 2016 for the fourth wave of the European Quality of Life Survey. This overview report presents the finding...

The ‘working poor’ are a substantial group, the latest estimate putting 10% of European workers at risk of poverty, up from 8% in 2007. This report describes the development of in-work poverty in the EU since the crisis of 2008, picking up where an earlier Eurofound report on this subject, published in 2010, ended and looks at what countries have done to combat the problem since.

The ageing of the EU’s population and workforce has implications for employment, working conditions, living standards and welfare. This report draws on the expertise of four EU Agencies in their respective areas, covers the policy challenges associated with the ageing workforce and considers innovative solutions.

EU citizens are increasingly concerned that today’s young people will have fewer opportunities for upward social mobility than their parents’ generation. This report maps patterns of intergenerational social mobility in the EU countries. It first looks at absolute social mobility – how societies have changed in terms of structural and occupational change and societal progress. Then it turns to relative social mobility (‘social fluidity’) – the opportunities for individuals to move between occupational classes. The story of recent social mobility is explored using data from the European Social Survey (ESS) and findings from Eurofound’s Network of European correspondents across the EU Member States.

Demographic ageing poses the challenge of how to keep people in employment for longer without negatively affecting their health and well-being. The solutions are particularly critical for workers engaged in arduous work. This report examines how mid-career reviews can play a key role by clarifying workers’ options for remaining in work until a later retirement age.

This report aims to improve understanding of the true cost of inadequate housing to EU Member States and to suggest policy initiatives that might help address its social and financial consequences.