The Federation of Transport Workers' Unions in the European Union (FST) and
theEuropean Community Shipowners' Association (ECSA) agreed a joint text on
working time and time off aboard ship in December 1997. The approximately
128,000 EU nationals and 26,000 non-EU nationals employed in the maritime
sector are among the workers excluded from the provisions of the EU Directive
(93/104/EC) on certain aspects of the organisation of working time.
In 1997 the average number of unemployed people in Germany was around 4.4
million, which marked a sharp increase of more than 400,000 on the previous
year. The average rate of unemployment was 11.4% in 1997, compared with 10.4%
in 1996. Although the German economy is expected to recover in 1998, most
economic experts in Germany think that this will have only small effects on
the labour market.
At the beginning of January 1998, Jaguar, part of the US-based Ford motor
manufacturing group, announced that it is to produce a new smaller luxury
sports car to compete with the BMW 3 series and the Mercedes class 3.
Jaguar's chair and chief executive, Nick Scheele said that :"our preference,
naturally was to build the car in the UK and I regret that we are not able to
produce an affordable investment proposition to make the new car at our
plants in the West Midlands but I am pleased that we will be going to
Halewood."
The average wage growth in 1997 for Norwegian wage earners is estimated to
have been 4.25%, according to statistics compiled as a basis for the 1998
bargaining round. For the first time, wage growth for top management within
the private sector has also been estimated, and it is indicated that top
managers have had higher than average wage growth.
/EIROnline/ is a database on industrial relations in Europe which can be
accessed directly through a website on the Worldwide Web. Speaking at the
launch event held in Brussels on 22 January 1998, Pádraig Flynn, the member
of the European Commission responsible for employment, social affairs and
industrial relations said that: "I am convinced that EIROnline will be an
invaluable resource for social partners, governments and EU institutions, not
to mention all EU citizens with an interest in industrial relations." Mr
Flynn added that "in today's ever more integrated European economy, where
employment is the number one priority, industrial relations are increasingly
important and practitioners and policy-makers need to keep up with
developments in this field in all the countries of the Union. EIROnline goes
a long way towards meeting these needs."
Bargaining over equal opportunities has been a central element in the 1998
round of negotiations in the Portuguese footwear industry. Even though equal
rights and, above all, equal pay are guaranteed by law and collective
bargaining, inequality continues because of structural and cultural factors.
Positive actions taken by workers and trade unions have centred around
structuring careers and overcoming cultural barriers.
In December 1997, management and trade unions signed a major agreement on the
reorganisation of Barilla - Italy's largest food group - and on investments
and new jobs.
In late 1997, a legislative proposal was submitted to the Dutch Parliament to
reduce the use of anti-takeover measures in listed companies. A few months
earlier, the Corporate Governance Committee had issued its final report.
Discussions surrounding corporate governance have focused on the position of
shareholders vis-à-vis the management board and the supervisory board
members. The trade union movement has particularly criticised the lack of
attention paid to workers' interests.
Eurofound’s European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2003, the first edition of the survey.
Eurofound's European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2007, the second edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2003.
Eurofound's European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2012, the third edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2003.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the EWCS 2005, the fourth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the EWCS 2010, the fifth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
This publication series explores scenarios for the future of manufacturing. The employment implications (number of jobs by sector, occupation, wage profile, and task content) under various possible scenarios are examined. The scenarios focus on various possible developments in global trade and energy policies and technological progress and run to 2030.
Given that compliance with lockdown measures is a first line of defence against COVID-19, maintaining trust in institutions is vital to ensure a coordinated, comprehensive and effective response to the pandemic. This report investigates developments in institutional and interpersonal trust across time, with a particular emphasis on the COVID-19 pandemic period and its impact. It examines the link between trust and discontent and investigates the effect of multidimensional inequalities as a driver of distrust.
This paper provides an analytical summary of state of the art academic and policy literature on the impact of climate change and policies to manage transitions to a carbon neutral economy on employment, working conditions, social dialogue and living conditions. It maps the key empirical findings around the impact of climate change and the green transitions on jobs, sectors, regions and countries in Europe, identifying the opportunities and risks that climate change policies bring to European labour markets.
Between 2021 and 2023 Eurofound is carrying out a pilot project on minimum wage on behalf of the European Commission. The question of how minimum wages and other forms of pay can be fixed for the self-employed is investigated as a part of this project through mapping national and sectoral approaches. Out of concern for the challenging conditions that the self-employed face, some Member States have established or are discussing establishing statutory forms of minimum pay for certain categories of self-employed.
The civil aviation sector has been deeply impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is one of the most severe crises the sector has ever experienced, giving rise to a number of significant challenges for companies and workers alike. This study will explore the role of social dialogue and collective bargaining in how the sector is adapting to the pandemic. What kinds of changes have been introduced, either through social dialogue or collective bargaining? Are the changes temporary or permanent?
Lockdown measures and the economic shift following the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a widening of the gender divide between men and women, putting at risk some of the gender equality gains that had been made in previous years. This report analyses changes in the distribution of paid and unpaid work, along with care and domestic responsibilities, among men and women during the crisis. It also explores the impact of the pandemic on the well-being of women and men.
The report provides an overview of the scale of teleworking before and during the COVID-19 crisis and gives an indication of ‘teleworkability’ across sectors and occupations. Building on previous Eurofound research on remote work, the report investigates the way businesses introduced and supported teleworking during the pandemic, as well as the experience of workers who were working from home during the crisis. The report also looks at developments in regulations related to telework in Member States and provides a review of stakeholders’ positions.
The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have varied across sectors, occupations and categories of worker (for instance, according to gender, age or employment status). Hours worked have declined the most in sectors such as accommodation services and food and beverage services, and in occupations heavily reliant on in-person interaction, such as sales work. At the same time, it’s in these sectors that labour shortages have become increasingly evident as labour markets have begun to normalise.
The COVID-19 crisis has increased inequality between social groups in health, housing, employment, income and well-being. While a small part of society was able to hold on to or increase its wealth, other groups such as women, young people, older people, people with disabilities, low- and middle-income earners and those with young children were acutely affected by the pandemic. Drawing on current research on how to best measure multidimensional inequality, this report highlights recent trends in inequality in the context of the COVID-19 crisis.
This report analyses how working conditions, job quality and working life outcomes – such as work–life balance, health and well-being, and sustainability of work – changed between February 2020 and spring 2021. Following up on responses to the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) 2020, it explores the differences between three distinct groups of workers: those teleworking during the COVID-19 pandemic, those who continued to work on their employers' premises as frontline staff, and those who were furloughed or worked reduced hours.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in European sectoral social dialogue taking place at cross-sectoral level. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements. The aim of this Eurofound’s study on representativeness is to identify the relevant national and European social partner organisations at cross-sectoral level in the EU Member States.