The European Commission adopted in November 1997 a proposal for a Council
Regulation aimed at extending to third-country nationals the provisions of
Council Regulation 1408/71 on the application of social security schemes to
employed people and their families moving in the European Union. The vast
majority of the 13 million third-country (ie, non-EU) nationals currently
legally resident and working in the EU have so far been excluded from the
coordination mechanisms introduced by Regulation 1408/71.
Trade union confederations in Portugal have adopted their public positions
with respect to the 1998 state Budget. Taxation issues are being given urgent
attention in an attempt to correct a range of anomalies.
On 10 November 1997, after six months of talks, the Greek Government, trade
unions and employers' organisations signed an agreement covering development,
competitiveness and employment, known as the /Confidence pact between
Government and the social partners on the way to the year 2000/.
Members of the SIPTU trade union at Howmedica International, the manufacturer
of surgical implants owned by the USA-based Pfizer Group, concluded an
agreement with management in mid-September 1997. The deal provides for
improved benefits, a more direct form of employee participation based on
partnership and active employee support for "continuous improvement"
measures. Some 200 SIPTU members are employed at the plant, which is located
in the mid-western city of Limerick.
A recent report from Norsk Institutt for personalutvikling og administrasjon
(NIPA) indicates that management salaries within the private sector have
increased significantly over the past year. Salaries have increased most for
top management, with an increase of 28% from 1 September 1996 to 1 September
1997. However, managers below this level have also received increases which
significantly exceed the average wage growth for Norwegian wage earners. The
study is based on a survey which covers 1,600 managers in 53 private firms.
From May to November 1997, two trade unions have been leading campaigns at
Electrabel, the electricity generating and distribution company, to encourage
recruitment through the introduction of the 32-hour working week.
Following the resignation of Jean Gandois, four candidates will be standing
for election in December 1997 to fill the vacancy for the presidency of
France's largest employers' organisation.
The Italian Government's undertaking in October 1997 to present a bill in
Parliament which will reduce the working week to 35 hours has provoked the
outright opposition of the Confindustria employers' confederation and sparked
broad debate on the future of "concertation" in Italy.
There has been an increase in the number of Spanish collective agreements
with "special clauses" as a result of the labour reforms of 1994 and 1997,
according to reports on bargaining published in late 1997. The latest topics
covered by these clauses are functional and geographical mobility,
controlling overtime, secure employment and pensions.
In October and November 1997, based on proposals by Martin Bangemann, the
commissioner responsible for industry, the European Commission adopted
communications to the Council of Ministers, the European Parliament and
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, aimed at
improving the competitiveness of two sectors of European industry -
textiles/clothing and construction.
The European Restructuring Monitor has reported on the employment impact of large-scale business restructuring since 2002. This series includes its restructuring-related databases (events, support instruments and legislation) as well as case studies and publications.
The European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) launched in 1990 and is carried out every five years, with the latest edition in 2020. It provides an overview of trends in working conditions and quality of employment for the last 30 years. It covers issues such as employment status, working time duration and organisation, work organisation, learning and training, physical and psychosocial risk factors, health and safety, work–life balance, worker participation, earnings and financial security, work and health, and most recently also the future of work.
Eurofound’s Flagship report series 'Challenges and prospects in the EU' comprise research reports that contain the key results of multiannual research activities and incorporate findings from different related research projects. Flagship reports are the major output of each of Eurofound’s strategic areas of intervention and have as their objective to contribute to current policy debates.
Eurofound’s work on COVID-19 examines the far-reaching socioeconomic implications of the pandemic across Europe as they continue to impact living and working conditions. A key element of the research is the e-survey, conducted in two rounds – in April and in July 2020. This is complemented by the inclusion of research into the ongoing effects of the pandemic in much of Eurofound’s other areas of work.
Eurofound’s European Company Survey (ECS) maps and analyses company policies and practices which can have an impact on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, as well as the development of social dialogue in companies. This series consists of outputs from the ECS 2019, the fourth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2004–2005 as the European Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
Eurofound's representativness studies are designed to allow the European Commission to identify the ‘management and labour’ whom it must consult under article 154 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). This series consists of studies of the representativeness of employer and worker organisations in various sectors.
This series reports on and updates latest information on the involvement of national social partners in policymaking. The series analyses the involvement of national social partners in the implementation of policy reforms within the framework of social dialogue practices, including their involvement in elaborating the National Reform Programmes (NRPs).
This series reports on the new forms of employment emerging across Europe that are driven by societal, economic and technological developments and are different from traditional standard or non-standard employment in a number of ways. This series explores what characterises these new employment forms and what implications they have for working conditions and the labour market.
The European Company Survey (ECS) is carried out every four to five years since its inception in 2004–2005, with the latest edition in 2019. The survey is designed to provide information on workplace practices to develop and evaluate socioeconomic policy in the EU. It covers issues around work organisation, working time arrangements and work–life balance, flexibility, workplace innovation, employee involvement, human resource management, social dialogue, and most recently also skills use, skills strategies and digitalisation.
The European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) is carried out every four to five years since its inception in 2003, with the latest edition in 2016. It examines both the objective circumstances of people's lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. It covers issues around employment, income, education, housing, family, health and work–life balance. It also looks at subjective topics, such as people's levels of happiness and life satisfaction, and perceptions of the quality of society.
This report analyses the involvement of the national social partners in the implementation of policy reforms within the framework of social dialogue practices, and their involvement in elaborating the National Reform Programmes (NRPs) and other key policy documents of the European Semester cycle.
This report builds on Eurofound's existing research on social mobility, assessing the distribution and transmission of wealth in Member States. It examines the roles of inheritance and household debt in explaining the transmission of advantage or disadvantage between the generations across Member States. The analysis is based on Eurosystem's Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS).
This report examines the contribution of social and employment services in EU Member States to the inclusion of people with disabilities, specifically in relation to the impact these have on labour market integration – in line with the 2006 UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The report includes a discussion of the costs and benefits of different approaches.
Living and working in Europe, Eurofound’s 2020 yearbook, provides a snapshot of what is happening in the work and lives of Europeans as explored in the Agency’s research activities over the course of 2020. The scope is broad, from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employment and on people’s well-being to the inequalities in the working conditions of women and men. It also highlights the connections between Eurofound’s work and EU policy priorities in the coming years.
This report examines people's optimism about the future, for themselves and for others, and the extent to which it varies depending on one's social situation and perceptions of the quality of society. The study includes an analysis of the relationships between people’s perceptions of fairness and objective indicators of their social and economic situation and living standards.
While the EU is considered to be a global leader in gender equality, it is not yet a reality for millions of Europeans given the different dynamics in the Member States. The EU Gender Equality Strategy 2020–2025 acknowledges the slow speed of progress and outlines key actions to promote gender equality. Have all countries improved their performance? Which countries have been able to dramatically reduce gender inequality? Which countries lag behind?
As part of an annual series on minimum wages, this report summarises the key developments during 2020 and early 2021 with an emphasis on social partners’ roles and views. It looks at how minimum wages were set in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and how minimum wages act as a reference for income support measures. Information from interviews with decision-makers on the process of setting the minimum wage in 2020, along with their assessment of impacts of the proposed EU Directive on adequate minimum wages is also included.
The European Green Deal features high on Member State agendas. However, there are concerns that the necessary changes to climate policy may have undesirable socioeconomic consequences, such as regressive distributional effects and increased inequality. This report attempts to identify those policies where there is a significant risk involved and aims to provide guidance on how negative distributional risk can be mitigated.
Digital technologies have made it possible for many workers to carry out their work anytime and anywhere, with consequent advantages and disadvantages. Disadvantages, for remote workers and teleworkers in particular, include the risk to health and well-being linked to long working hours. To address this issue, there have been calls for the ‘right to disconnect’. This report includes case studies that chart the implementation and impact of the right to disconnect at workplace level.
Based on data from the European Company Survey 2019, this policy brief examines the characteristics of innovative companies and explores the types of workplace practices that are significantly associated with establishments' likelihood of introducing innovation. It also investigates differences between workplace practices of innovative and non-innovative companies. Additionally, data gathered through case studies analyse the role of workplace practices in different phases of the innovation process.
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